


In Which Cloud Realizes the Issue with Time-Travel...

by JustAPlaceToPostMyDrabbles



Series: In Which Cloud... [2]
Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020), Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
Genre: Angeal is confused, BAMF Cloud Strife, Big!Cloud is the voice of reason, Big!Seph being a bad influence, But it’s the Smol one, But only for Seph, Cloud has PTSD, Gen, Genesis does what Genesis wants, Hojo did not do his research, M/M, Reno is a little shit, Seph is good support, Smol!Cloud is a great secretary, Time Travel, Tseng is worried, Zack is confused
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-12 11:55:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 19,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29884209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAPlaceToPostMyDrabbles/pseuds/JustAPlaceToPostMyDrabbles
Summary: Even with all the time to reflect in Cloud's head, Sephiroth didn’t know where he went horribly wrong. Cloud wasn’t supposed to grow up like this. He was supposed to be strong and independent. Someone who needed no one else.It annoyed Sephiroth. And it annoyed Sephiroth even more thathewas starting to accept it.In which a younger Cloud makes friends, an older Cloud makes choices, and both Sephiroths just want Cloud to get on with it.“Why did you bring Cloud here?” he asked slowly.“Cloud?”“Zackary!” Sephiroth’s disbelief colored the other’s name.“Oh! OH! Spikey! Wait, his name is Cloud?”Sequel toIn Which Cloud Time-Travels into Sephiroth’s Head
Relationships: Sephiroth & Cloud Strife, Sephiroth/Cloud Strife
Series: In Which Cloud... [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2187204
Comments: 84
Kudos: 249





	1. So, You Have an Evil Megalomaniac in Your Head...

The shock still hadn’t worn off by the time the door closed. Sephiroth felt the pen in his hand clatter onto the table, his green eyes wide with surprise as he slowly lifted a hand to his hair, where he could still feel the warmth from the hand of the younger Cloud.

 _‘What the fuck?!’_ the older Cloud in his head commented flatly.

“Zackary,” Sephiroth said slowly, turning to him, who was just as frozen as he had been.

“Huh?!” With a cookie in his hand that was dangerously teetering out of his fingers, Zack turned to Sephiroth, his eyes still wide, but regaining his awareness.

“Why did you bring Cloud here?” he asked slowly.

“Cloud?” 

“ _Zackary!_ ” Sephiroth’s disbelief colored the other’s name.

“Oh! OH! Spikey! Wait, his name is Cloud?”

Sephiroth’s incredulous look was enough to make Zack blush. 

“Well, I heard a rumor in the SOLDIER cafeteria about a Chocobo with Mako Eyes among the cadets, like, three weeks ago or something? So I went to go investigate. And sure enough, there was Spikey with super mako eyes! Are you sure his name is Cloud and not Spikey?” Zack rambled. Sephiroth took a deep breath.

“Have you just been calling Cloud ‘Spikey’ this entire time?” Sephiroth asked, half amused.

“Mm-hm. Or Chocobo. Cause he looks like one,” Zack hummed, stuffing the cookie into his mouth before it could fall out of his hand. “He said he knew you. You talked to him a lot in his head.”

“I--what…?” Sephiroth blinked slowly, considering Zack’s words, but the horror from the bond was far more distracting than the shock from Zack’s words.

 _‘No. Oh… No! He’s here?!’_ Cloud’s disbelief colored every word. Sephiroth reached over and slowly poked the other through their bond.

_‘I don’t...’_

_‘The Sephiroth I know! He’s in my younger self’s head!’_

Sephiroth’s spine stiffened and he slowly looked at Zack. Zack, who had spent three weeks tailing and talking to the blond. The blond with the insane version of himself in his head.

 _‘That is… not good.’_ Sephiroth said slowly.

_‘Understatement.’_

_‘Maybe… Maybe it isn’t the Sephiroth you know. Maybe it’s a different one?’_ Sephiroth offered slowly. _‘Your younger self didn’t seem… insane or anything. He didn’t look influenced by my other self.’_

_‘...’_

“Zackary,” Sephiroth said, looking at the black haired teen. “Zackary, did Cloud say or do anything strange?”

“You mean other than telling me that you talk to him in his head and that you have dinner with us on Wednesday nights?” Zack asked, rubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t think so? I mean, he’s a good kid. Goes to classes on time. Does all his drills. Even though he doesn’t need them. He’s super smart too. Like, he’d be top of the class if he actually cared about that. His mako enhancements are crazy though.”

“How… did he get that much mako exposure without dying?” Sephiroth asked, his brow furrowed.

Zack shrugged. “Donno. When I asked, he didn’t seem to notice that his mako levels were way above normal. I mean… you saw his eyes. Blue with a bunch of green in it. All glowy and stuff. But it doesn’t seem to be hurting him.”

Sephiroth stared at Zack, taking a deep breath. And then another. And then another. Then he slowly picked up his pen, considering his next move.

 _‘I suppose it would benefit us to keep an eye on your younger self. To be sure…?’_ Sephiroth said to Cloud slowly, his words almost hesitant.

 _‘It wouldn’t be a bad idea.’_ Cloud agreed. _‘At the very least, if he’s in a situation like me… He’s rather powerless to the whims of my younger self.’_

Sephiroth felt his lips quirk up into a smile. _‘You’re powerless to my whims, Cloud?’_

Cloud didn’t respond. But Sephiroth took his silence as an answer, looking at Zack.

“Keep an eye on him, Zack.” Sephiroth’s words were calm, but his tone was urgent.

“Sure. Wait, are you saying he’s like crazy? You two don’t talk in his head?!” Zack asked, digging into the bag of cookies and pulling another one out. “How would he know of our dinners on Wednesdays otherwise?”

“He’s not crazy,” Sephiroth confirmed. “He probably does talk to me in his head. Just as I talk to him inside my head. That’s how I know of him. Of Cloud.”

_‘Smooth. You know he’s going to freak out, right?’_

_‘We’ll deal with it.’_ Sephiroth watched the array of emotions cross Zack’s face. Shock and then puzzlement, and then a slow understanding.

“Seph? You hear Cloud’s voice in your head?”

“It’s an older, more mature Cloud,” Sephiroth commented, looking back at his paperwork in an effort to avoid eye contact. “But it’s still Cloud. I imagine it is similar for the cadet. He knows me and speaks to an older version of myself.”

“Uh...” Zack didn’t seem to understand. And Sephiroth couldn’t blame him. Without background knowledge, it did seem a little odd.

“And… if you’ve already heard about the rumor… The Chocobo with Mako Eyes… then no doubt the entirety of Science has heard of it already too.”

Zack’s eyes widened and his hand slowly pulled out of the bag. “That’s not good.”

“Indeed.” Sephiroth said slowly. _‘With that much mako, it is inevitable Hojo will take interest in your past self.’_

Cloud’s fear and alarm was overwhelming. Sephiroth took a deep breath, calming his furiously beating heart, reaching through the link in an attempt to calm the other. 

_‘We won’t let him get to your younger self, Cloud.’_

_‘Sephiroth, if your other self is really in my younger self, then… what’s stopping him from convincing Cloud to offer himself up to Science?’_

Sephiroth’s eyes widened in alarm and he slowly looked at Zack, who was staring at him in just as much alarm. “Warn him, Zackary. If you wish to keep Cloud alive, you need to tell him to keep away from Science. From Hojo.”

Zack sprinted out of his office.

\--

“Spikey! Hey, Spikey!” Zack called.

The teen was faster though, walking down the halls with a spring in his step, making his way back to the infantry area. Zack could kind of understand though--it was almost time for curfew. And cadets could get into big trouble if they were found out after curfew.

Zack sprinted down the halls and stopped short to turn a corner before he was roughly pulled past the open hallway and down the path he had been on. His speed and momentum sent him stumbling a few steps as he slid past the corner. “Whoa, what?!”

He came face-to-face with Tseng.

Zack froze, unsure what the Turk wanted but Tseng simply looked at him a few seconds before peeking down the hall, watching Cloud enter his room and shut the door behind himself. There was a few seconds of silence before Tseng beckoned Zack over to follow him down the hall, pressing a finger to his own lips to indicate that silence was needed.

Snapping his mouth shut, Zack slowly followed Tseng down the hall as they made their way into a conference room. Tseng beckoned Zack in, shutting the door behind him when the Second entered.

“You’ve met Strife.”

Knowing better than to question, Zack’s brow furrowed, a frown on his face. “Yeah? What’s that to you?”

“I interviewed him when he first got here. About his mako enhancements,” Tseng said, slowly making his way around the table and sitting in one of the chairs.

“What about them?” Zack asked, guarded. Tseng looked him over slowly, as if contemplating something. 

Suppressing the urge to shudder upon being analyzed, Zack stood up straight, his shoulders back and his eyes narrowed. He wasn’t sure what the Turk was on about, or why Cloud had made such a strong impression on the Turk, but he also wasn’t going to let Tseng go and hurt his Spikey.

“Perish the thought, Fair,” Tseng said, as if reading his mind. Maybe he was? Zack wasn’t sure what kind of superpower Turks had, all considering. “I’m not here to challenge you over your self-claimed ownership of Strife.”

“Then what do you want?” Zack asked, his tone harsh and cold. He didn’t usually adopt such a voice, but Turks all rubbed him the wrong way.

“Did you know that Strife has recently gotten the attention of the Science department?”

Zack felt the floor fall out from under him, his stomach dropping uncomfortably. Maybe that last cookie in Seph’s office wasn’t a good idea?

Tseng made his point though. To hammer it home, he pulled a piece of paper from the inside of his jacket, tucked away from sight. Unfolding it and spreading it out, he turned it to Zack and slid it across the table to him.

“I knew he would be, when I interviewed him. The level of his mako enhancements are completely abnormal. There has, thus far, been zero cases of someone sustaining that much mako and not being comatose or dead. I’ve been keeping an eye on him ever since,” Tseng said. “I’ve been subverting the orders to collect him ever since, but I fear I will not be able to do so for much longer.”

Zack swallowed as he read the words _Head of the Science and Research Division_ and then _Deliver Cloud Strife to the Science Department, Room 687_. He looked up at Tseng, his face drained of color. No one who was ‘Delivered’ to Science ever came out. Especially if the order was made and carried out by a Turk.

“Why are you telling me this?” Zack whispered, his eyes wide. “You can’t tell me you care for Spikey. Turks don’t care about anyone.”

Tseng gave a cool smile, his eyes cold. “Strife is not the first, nor will he be the last, to be targeted by Science. The boy’s made an impression on me.” The smile dropped and he stared straight into Zack’s eyes. “There’s something more to the boy than he seems. Something… dangerous. I’m not sure if you’ve seen it, Fair, but perhaps, one day you will.”

“So you don’t want him captured by Science?” Zack asked, struggling to confirm this.

Tseng sat back in the chair. “If he was, I fear that whatever sleeps inside him will emerge.”

“I...” Zack swallowed again, his stomach turning uncomfortably. “What do we do?”

“I will continue to monitor Strife,” Tseng said softly. “Stick around him, Fair. Bring him around the Firsts. Show him to everyone and everything you can. _Make sure he cannot disappear_.”

Zack slowly handed the paper back to Tseng, his fingers trembling. If Tseng caught the movement (he probably did, the bastard), he didn’t say anything. Simply took the paper and slid it back into the hidden pocket on the inside of his jacket.

“What is it that sleeps inside of Cloud?” Zack asked, watching Tseng stand and slide the chair back in. “What are you afraid of?”

“Whether it is Leviathan, the Goddess, or Gaia, itself, that sleeps in Strife, I care not. It is dangerous. The gatekeeper is Strife and if we were to break the gate the danger is sure to follow.”

Zack left the conference room, feeling like he was moving on auto-pilot. 

\--

“Uh, Seph? Is your… like… older self… dangerous?”

Zack’s words tumbled out before he even had a chance to think about what he was saying. Sephiroth didn’t respond at first and his pen continued to move over the report that he was reviewing. 

Cloud was in classes right now. Zack knew that Tseng would have Turks watching him during his classes--it was nearly impossible to disappear when so many people were around Cloud.

“Older Cloud thinks so,” Sephiroth finally said. “And judging by what he has told me, I am inclined to agree.”

“Like… on a scale of one to ten… One being… I don’t know--I’m going to eat your pudding--to ten being… uh… stabbing a baby chocobo… how dangerous?” Zack asked, still feeling quite hollow. If something about Cloud could spook a _Turk_ , exactly what were they dealing with here?

Sephiroth paused in his writing and Zack glanced at him when the silence lingered on for too long. The General was staring at him closely, a frown on his face.

“Cloud says “one-thousand and three--like, dropping a meteor on the planet to obliterate all lifeforms dangerous”,” Sephiroth said finally, putting down his pen.

“O-oh...” Zack blinked, a little unsure. It was something he couldn’t picture. Sephiroth was strong, yes. Stronger than all of SOLDIER, maybe even stronger than them combined. But even then, it didn’t even come close to what Sephiroth was saying. Or rather, what older Cloud was saying.

“What has upset you, Zackary?” Sephiroth asked, heaving a sigh.

“I was approached by Tseng, yesterday. When I tried to catch up to Spikey after he left here to warn him about Science.”

Sephiroth’s face went blank and his eyes narrowed. But he didn’t jump to his feet or brandish Masamune, so Zack figured he was probably alright revealing this information.

“Science has already ordered Cloud to be brought in. By the Turks.”

The alarm on Sephiroth’s face wasn’t comforting. But Zack pushed forward anyway.

“Tseng said… that he was subverting the orders. Had been, anyway. But he doesn’t think he can do it for much longer. He wanted me to protect Spikey. Or rather, stop your other self from doing bad things by protecting Spikey. Tseng said that Cloud is the gatekeeper.”

Sephiroth went rigid. It was impossible to tell what was going through his mind during the few moments that Zack fell silent. Zack considered that, perhaps, he was talking to the older Cloud in his head. Still weird, but not as weird as Spikey being _dangerous_.

“So, yeah… I think… I think I need to let out some steam.” Zack teetered towards the door, swaying a little. Sephiroth watched him leave and slowly pulled out his PHS to text Angeal and have him collect his puppy before he knocked himself unconscious in the middle of a hallway.

\--

The Cloud in his mind was silent throughout the conversation with Zack after his initial input. Even when Sephiroth had summoned little Cloud into his office to speak to him, the older one in his mind did not speak. Little Cloud knocked twice before entering, walking up to Sephiroth’s desk unprompted and looking right into Sephiroth’s green eyes with his mako blue.

“You know me,” Sephiroth started. 

“Just as you know me,” Cloud confirmed. “Though I suspect we are… different than the ones who talk to us in our mind.”

Gaia, even little Cloud kind of spoke like Sephiroth. It was a little creepy, to be honest. Older Cloud seemed to agree with this assessment with a mental shudder.

“Has he ever… done anything to hurt you?” Sephiroth asked.

“He once told me to jump into a pool of mako to get my enhancements done early. I was ten.”

Sephiroth felt his face slack with alarm and fear, but considering that little Cloud was still _alive_ and _breathing_ and not comatose, it seemed to relax him a little. “I… Apologize for anything he’s said or done to you.”

“He’s offended,” Cloud chirped. “But you don’t have to apologize for anything. I was the one to jump in. He’s never been able to control me or anything. The most he can do is give me a headache. But I can flick him away when he’s being unreasonable.”

Sephiroth wondered what kind of magic Cloud Strife possessed to be able to handle him so easily. Although… he paused and considered the Cloud in his own head… perhaps it wasn’t that unusual. He seemed to have a weakness for Cloud.

“What does he want?” Sephiroth asked, almost fearing the answer.

Cloud tilted his head as if thinking, but Sephiroth knew he was conversing with the one who lived in his head. “A body. To fight. The usual. Although, judging by the way he said fight, I think he honestly just wants to spar. He does want to kill Hojo though. Probably because Hojo keeps trying to kidnap me.”

Sephiroth felt his mouth open and then he slowly closed it, unsure what to say. Cloud in his head remained unhelpfully silent.

So, little Cloud _did_ know that Hojo was after him. That was a bit of a surprise, considering that he had Tseng looking out for him. Turks were professional and Tseng was one of the best. But perhaps the Sephiroth in his mind had warned him. Perhaps the Sephiroth in Cloud’s mind had no intention of bringing little Cloud to Science.

“He is quite interested in your Cloud though,” Cloud added casually, oblivious to Sephiroth’s internal struggle. Sephiroth felt a bit of warmth when Cloud referred to the one in his head as “your Cloud”, though it was promptly dashed by little Cloud’s next words. “He wants to know why he ran away again.”

The utter fury from Cloud’s mental link exploded in Sephiroth’s head, making him stagger in his chair. Just as suddenly as it started, it stopped, locked away from Sephiroth’s mind, leaving him empty and reeling.

“Cloud…?” Sephiroth muttered, though he wasn’t sure which one he was addressing. He gave a strong mental poke to Cloud, but Cloud didn’t respond.

“Mister General, you _are_ kind of scary. You can’t expect my other self not to run away when you say things like that,” Cloud said, apparently speaking to the Sephiroth in his head. “Don’t worry, Sir. If Mister General in my head does something you don’t like, just tell me. I’ll smack him around for you. Same goes for your Cloud too. If Mister General does anything older me doesn’t like, I’ll smack him around for him too.”

While reassuring, Sephiroth couldn’t exactly depend on the little Cloud to keep his older self from going homicidal. Which said a lot about his life right now.

“Do you… has he told you what he’s done to… my Cloud?” Sephiroth asked.

“I can guess,” Cloud said, his blue eyes clear. “He says weird things sometimes. He compares me to him. Sometimes he’s disappointed I’m not my older self. He changed a lot when we broke into the Shinra mansion library and he found some books written by Professor Gast.”

The name rang bells in Sephiroth’s head, as well as the older Cloud. Slowly, the older Cloud opened himself up and listened into the conversation, his anger gone.

“He became… nicer after that. I’m not sure if it was because my emotions were affecting him or if what he read had that big of an effect on him, but he’s not really mean anymore. He doesn’t like it when I complain about stuff, but it’s not like he can do anything about it either,” Cloud shrugged. “I told him we could share my Ma when he got a body and he could be my brother.”

Older Cloud’s disbelief and shock echoed through the bond. Sephiroth sighed deeply and spoke slowly. 

“He hurt my Cloud.”

Little Cloud didn’t seem surprised at that. “Yeah. Sometimes he’ll slip up and try to hurt me too. But he doesn’t have a body so it’s not like he can.”

“Are you not… afraid that… if he does get a body, he will hurt you?” Sephiroth asked.

Little Cloud considered this. “It’s possible. If I made him angry, he probably would. But I doubt he would kill me. I think he just wants to test me, really. I think…” He eyed Sephiroth and then peered into his green eyes, as if he could see the older Cloud behind them. “I think he just wants someone who could match him. That’s why he’s training me. He taught me, you know. How to use a sword. How to hunt. How to administer my own mako treatments.”

Sephiroth’s mouth opened, but he couldn’t find anything to say and closed it again. Older Cloud remained quiet in his head.

“He told me that he’ll be with me while I am in SOLDIER. He warned me against the Science Department. Said that if I ever met Hojo, I should break his arms and his legs and throw him down the stairs. Clearly he has an investment in my continued survival.”

 _‘I don’t fucking believe it...’_ Cloud muttered in his head. And Sephiroth couldn’t really believe it either. Confirmation from little Cloud was welcome. At least his homicidal self wasn’t into subjecting people to Hojo’s influence. As insane as he was, at least he had that going for him. Which brought up another question...

“So… he doesn’t have an interest in taking over the planet? Or destroying it?” Sephiroth asked slowly.

“He already did that once. And it didn’t exactly work. So he’s gonna try something new this time,” little Cloud said.

_‘I’m a monster. Sephiroth, you’ve turned my younger self into a monster. You have totally corrupted me.’_

Sephiroth rather thought that Cloud had it the other way around. Clearly, little Cloud was the monster who had somehow manipulated and twisted the other Sephiroth into a less homicidal version of Cloud’s Sephiroth who now desired to fight strong people. Or at least, fight Cloud.

“Also, Mister General says that if your Cloud ever got a body back, he wants to fight him. But he only wants to fight him in his prime, so he wants to train him and give him a suitable weapon and stuff.”

This was… getting more and more bizarre. Sephiroth felt like he needed to wrap up this conversation before he exploded from the information.

“I’m not sure if I believe you,” Sephiroth said slowly.

“No one’s telling you to,” Cloud replied, shrugging. “Mister General says that big me probably won’t believe anything he says anyway. But!” Cloud put both hands on Sephiroth’s desk and pulled himself up on the desk, reaching over and petting Sephiroth on the head again. “But! It doesn’t matter, does it? It’s not like Mister General can do anything right now.”

Sephiroth tried to lean backwards, away from the touch, but Cloud stubbornly leaned with him so he was almost hovering over Sephiroth. The silver haired General sighed deeply, allowing Cloud to pet him and spoke again. 

“Why do you keep doing that?” he asked finally.

“Because your other self hates it,” Cloud replied cheerfully.

Well, in that case...

\--

Angeal entered Sephiroth’s office with Zack in tow. He had picked the other up in the middle of the hallway after receiving Sephiroth’s PHS text, wandering around in a daze, mumbling something about Spikey and Seph. Which, fair, since Sephiroth was the last person to have seen Zack, something must have happened.

While he wasn’t an expert on Sephiroth’s moods, he did know that every now and then Sephiroth would go into a daze. Perhaps whatever had affected Sephiroth was affecting Zack now?

The ‘Spikey’ that Zack was mumbling about was probably The Chocobo with Mako Eyes. He had heard of the rumor of a newbie cadet with bright mako eyes and dismissed it almost immediately after hearing it. There was no way an incoming cadet had that much mako in him. Zack, on the other hand, was convinced he found the Chocobo and had started calling him ‘Spikey’. Angeal wondered if Zack knew that some people bought mako colored contact lenses to try to pretend to be SOLDIERs.

But when he stepped through the threshold of Sephiroth’s office, he was startled to see his friend working quietly at his desk with a blond cadet standing behind him. A blond cadet with the craziest spiky hair that looked like a chocobo’s crest and bright blue mako eyes without the hint of contacts. 

The cadet was holding a brush in his hand and _Sephiroth’s hair in the other_. He was holding the long silver strands in his right hand and a black ribbon in his mouth, putting the brush in one of his many pockets on his cadet uniform and expertly tying Sephiroth’s hair up with the black ribbon. Then he combed through the ponytail and nodded.

“Better?” the cadet asked.

“Much. Thank you,” Sephiroth responded. “Cloud, can you review that stack?”

The cadet (who was tiny--at first he thought the other was crouched behind Sephiroth’s chair, but now that he actually looked at him, the boy was probably only around a hundred and sixty centimeters), stepped out from behind Sephiroth and took a folder off the stack.

Angeal’s mouth slowly closed as he struggled to form the words. Since when was Sephiroth comfortable with anyone standing behind him? Or touching his hair? Angeal still remembered the time Genesis nearly got impaled by Masamune when he almost burned Sephiroth’s hair with a fireball. Admittedly, the cadet wasn’t trying to set Sephiroth’s hair on fire.

And Sephiroth was notoriously picky about how he did his paperwork. Since when had Sephiroth allowed a _cadet_ to touch his papers?

Zack gave a small whimper behind him when seeing the picture, which caused both Sephiroth and the teen to look at him before looking back at their respective papers.

Angeal got the distinct impression he was missing a lot of information.

“Angeal, nice to see you. Here’s your share,” Sephiroth said, gesturing to a small stack of folders next to his desk on the floor. The cadet took the papers out of his folder in his hands and flipped through them, organizing them in some kind of bizarre fashion. There didn’t appear to be any logic behind how he sorted them, but when the cadet handed the folder to Sephiroth, the silver General took it with an approving nod.

Which… was… weird…

“I...” Angeal began, but the words slowly died on his tongue.

“This is Cloud. Cloud, this is Angeal,” Sephiroth said, as if an afterthought. “Cloud, can you…?”

Sephiroth didn’t even finish the question before the cadet tossed another folder to him. Then the cadet turned to Angeal and tilted his head. “Commander Hewley,” he said, his tone calm and even. Respectful, even without the salute. 

“I… Sephiroth, why do you have a cadet helping you with paperwork?” Angeal asked finally. “Cadets should be in the middle of classes now.”

“Cloud, what class are you missing?” Sephiroth asked without even looking up from his paperwork.

“Battle Strategies, General Sephiroth,” Cloud called back, looking back at his own stack of folders.

“Do you need to go?” Sephiroth asked.

“Nope.”

“Good.”

Angeal stared at the two like a fish. “No! Not good! Not good at all! You should be in class, cadet. And Sephiroth, you can’t just… remove a cadet from class to help you with paperwork!”

“Fine. Cloud, how do you kill a tonberry?” Sephiroth seemed impatient, almost annoyed.

“They’re slow, so if you can outspeed it, you’re usually fine. Hit hard and fast. Defense is weaker than magic defense,” the cadet intoned.

“And a malboro?”

“Esuna or Cleansing is helpful if you can’t kill it right away, otherwise Lightning materia. High defense, low magic defense. If you can maintain distance and kill it with materia, you’re good.”

“Bloodhound?”

“Weak to ice.”

“There. That’s your lesson for today,” Sephiroth concluded, not even looking up from his papers. The cadet gave a small hum and flicked another organized folder onto the pile ready for Sephiroth to sign. 

Zack gave a sigh behind him, shaking off whatever had been bothering him before walking over and ruffling the cadet’s hair. “Seph isn’t working you too hard, is he?”

“I volunteered,” the cadet said warmly. “Don’t knock over that pile. It’ll be a pain to reorganize.” He nodded to the pile on the coffee table, which Zack stepped away from. 

It was alarming, the way the cadet and one of his best friends worked. They moved without words, with purpose and understanding. Somehow, they _knew_ what each other was doing at any given time. If Cloud passed a file without looking, Sephiroth was ready to accept it. If Sephiroth wanted Cloud to grab something, he only had to look at the pile and Cloud would somehow understand and know _which_ folder out of the massive pile he wanted.

Angeal was officially worried.

But that didn’t mean it wasn’t efficient.

Right before his eyes, the massive piles of folders on Sephiroth’s desk vanished, one-by-one into the boxes ready for archiving to retrieve. Angeal didn’t even think he had ever _seen_ Sephiroth’s desk clean before.

“Well done,” Sephiroth said, looking at the cadet.

Cloud gave a cheeky grin and a wave. “I gotta go. See you, General Sephiroth!”

“Do you need a pass?” Sephiroth asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I’ll ask the red-head Turk that’s been stalking me,” Cloud called back, stepping around Angeal and waving goodbye to Zack. Then the cadet was gone, Sephiroth slumping in his seat, twirling with a strand of his long, silver hair. 

“Sephiroth…?” 

The General looked up, somewhat dazed. “Hm?”

“Are you planning to kidnap the cadet to help you with paperwork?” Angeal asked slowly.

“What paperwork?” Sephiroth asked, looking around at his clean office.

Zack choked on a laugh.

\--

_‘There is someone around that corner, Cloud,’_ Sephiroth called in his mind. Cloud paused considering the words.

_‘Dangerous? Science?’_

_‘Doubtful. Probably a Turk,’_ Sephiroth commented. _‘Also, why did you spend so much time helping my other self with paperwork? You could have spent it on literally anything else. Like training.’_

 _‘Because I wanted to see what his desk looked like clean,’_ Cloud chirped.

The exasperation filtering through the bond was pretty funny, but they both knew that wasn’t the main reason Cloud had offered to help the General.

_‘Snooping?’_

_‘I don’t need to do that when you’re in my head and can tell me anything I wanted to know. But yeah, kind of. There are differences between what you knew and what is here, after all.’_

He stopped right at the corner of the hall before flattening himself against the wall and staring intently at the corner. There was a minute. Then two. Then a sigh from round the corner.

“Damn, yo. You knew, huh?” The redheaded turk said, a scowl on his face when he peeked around the corner to look at Cloud.

“My own personal stalker! Where is Stalker #2?” Cloud asked, his blue eyes laughing.

The redhead grinned. “On desk duty. So, Chocobo, have you been doing okay? Haven’t run into any shady characters, have you?”

“You mean like stalkers?” Cloud asked with a mischievous grin.

“Sure. Like stalkers. Not us though. We’re the cool stalkers, right?” the redhead said cheerfully, his arms crossed around his chest.

 _‘Irritating lot,’_ Sephiroth inputted. _‘You shouldn’t spend too much time around the Turks, Cloud. They’ll be bad for your mental health.’_

 _‘That’s mean, Mister General,’_ Cloud said to his headmate, but he grinned up at the redhead. “I haven’t seen any other stalkers around, but someone _did_ try to slip something into my lunch yesterday afternoon. It made my water look green. If they are trying to prank me, it wasn’t a very good one.”

 _‘Why do you insist on riling them up like this?’_ Sephiroth sighed into his mind. _‘This can only end badly for you, you know this, right?’_

 _‘Really? Hm. Why is that?’_ Cloud asked, watching Reno’s face turn from surprise to worry in an instant. 

“Yo, if you see any more of those pranks, tell me, kay?” the redhead said, poking Cloud in the forehead. Cloud squeezed his eyes shut and put his hand on his head where Reno had poked, pouting.

“Kay, Stalker #1,” Cloud said. “Should I get you a sample next time?”

“Sure, Chocobo. Get me a sample so I find out who to poke with my special Anti-Naughty Stick,” Reno said, grinning, the worry melting off his face.

 _‘I suppose it wouldn’t be a bad thing. To keep a Turk around for a while, since Science is still stalking you,’_ Sephiroth mused. _‘Just make sure to get rid of them after.’_

 _‘Why? They’re a lot of fun to keep around. Can I keep him, Mister General?! Please?’_ Cloud pouted to the other through the link, though his face looked at the redheaded Turk in wonder.

“You have an Anti-Naughty Stick?!” Cloud asked, immensely amused. “Can I see?! Have you used it on anyone?!”

 _‘I’ll consider the hamster’s usefulness at a later date,’_ Sephiroth’s amused response came through the link as Reno grabbed Cloud’s shoulder.

“Only people who have deserved it. Maybe I’ll show you later,” Reno said, patting his shoulder. “Hey, Chocobo?”

Cloud’s wide blue eyes looked up at him.

“You need to be careful, okay?” Reno said slowly. “I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. Keep an eye out for danger and be careful where you go alone.”

“I’m _never_ alone, Stalker #1,” Cloud replied. “But I hear you. I’ll be careful.”

“Good kid,” Reno said, clapping him on the shoulder. “Your mako enhancements are strong, but you aren’t invincible. You gotta take it easy.”

Cloud blinked slowly before looking at Reno carefully. “Stalker #1, you’ll be watching out for me, yeah? So I don’t have anything to worry about, right?”

A little flattery went a long way. Especially with someone like Reno. Cloud could feel Sephiroth’s approval through the bond, amused, yet wary. Cloud knew that Sephiroth did not like the Turks, he knew that the General in his mind found most people annoying, but he was glad that Sephiroth seemed to be warming up to the idea of Cloud having friends.

Reno stared at him and then patted him on the back lightly. “Sure, kid. I’ll look out for you. Don’t get into any trouble, yo.”

“No promises!” Cloud said, grinning as he made his way around the corner and walked past Reno. “Oh yeah. Stalker #1?”

“What is it, squirt?”

“Tell Stalker #2 I missed him, okay?”

Reno laughed, watching the kid wink at him and vanish down the hall and back towards the infantry rooms.

Cloud shut the door to his bedroom, tilting his head and closing his eyes, trying to hear the strain of any foreign electronic equipment. He had heard it twice now, although his conversations with his roommates were relatively innocent and his conversations with his headmate were not spoken out loud. It didn’t matter to him whether the room was bugged or not. He didn’t need words to speak.

Thankfully, today was a bug-free day.

_‘Hey Mister General?’_

Sephiroth shifted in his mind. _‘What is it?’_

_‘Why did you hurt my older self?’_

The question was a loaded one. Cloud knew that Sephiroth wasn’t exactly the most chatty type, especially about himself. The insinuations from Sephiroth’s words were enough to confirm that, yes, Sephiroth had hurt his other self. Which would have been disturbing, if Sephiroth hadn’t been living in his head for a good chunk of his life.

_‘...Does it matter? It’s not like I can hurt him now.’_

Diversion. A tactic that Sephiroth used often when he was trying to avoid answering a question. But Cloud had learned from the best, had learned how to spot it, and didn’t fall for it.

 _‘Yes. It does matter. Because whatever reason you had for hurting him then could translate to hurting me later. So, yes, it does matter.’_

Cloud could feel a small thread of disapproval from the bond. Not quite betrayal, but something close to it.

 _‘If I said I wasn’t going to hurt you, would you believe me?’_ Sephiroth asked, his tone somewhat guarded.

 _‘Yes,’_ Cloud responded. He felt the relief from the bond easily, mostly because he had been closely monitoring the bond for changes. _‘But can you say the same to my older self?’_

Sephiroth didn’t answer so Cloud poked the bond between them. 

_‘I can trust you won’t hurt me. But if you have hurt my other self, you can’t trust yourself. I’ll look too much like him eventually.’_

_‘...’_ Sephiroth seemed to consider that. _‘He was someone who didn’t want me.’_

_‘Didn’t… want?’_

_‘I wanted him. I wanted him to be by my side. If that is love, obsession, or desire, I don’t know. But he didn’t want me so I took away everything he wanted instead. Because if he didn’t want me then I’d be the last thing left he had.’_ Sephiroth’s words were cold. Chilling, almost. And to anyone else who didn’t share their mind with Sephiroth, perhaps it would be frightening. But Cloud felt the sadness and desperation through the tone and words.

_‘He was something you couldn’t have?’_

_‘That’s right. It made me angry. Desperate. He was something I couldn’t obtain and so he was someone I desired above all else. My counterpart. No matter how many people I killed or how much destruction I brought, he would stand against me.’_

_‘Did you want him to stand next to you instead?’_

_‘...’_

_‘What if you had killed him?’_

Sephiroth remained quiet for a few moments. _‘Then he would have been lost to me forever. Or I would have found a way back to his side. I don’t know.’_

Cloud didn’t quite understand why Sephiroth was unsure of this. His conversation with the current General made it seem like the Sephiroth in his head would hurt him. Or that he would drive Cloud to madness. But Cloud knew better. The Sephiroth in his mind wasn’t innocent by any means, but he wasn’t the monster they painted him as.

It was a lot easier to kill a monster, after all.

 _‘If you saw him, my other self, now… What would you do?’_ Cloud asked.

 _‘I...’_ Sephiroth broke off, considering the question. Cloud let him have a few moments, until he was ready to speak again. _‘I would probably try to bring him to my side again.’_

It was an honest answer. Cloud could tell that much. But an unpleasant one to hear.

_‘If you regained your body?’_

_‘The call between us is overwhelming. He fights against it. I fight against him. I want him by my side, but I loathe the idea. Because if he were truly by my side, then he wouldn’t be Cloud anymore. He would have given up everything that made him Cloud.’_

Cloud sat on his bed and slowly closed his eyes, flopping backwards on the sheets. _‘You like it when he fights against you. You like it when he challenges you.’_

_‘Of course. Cloud is someone who is exciting to fight.’_

_‘You see the potential in me to be that Cloud so you are training me.’_

_‘Surely you knew this though. I haven’t exactly hidden this from you,’_ Sephiroth said, the frown in his words shining through. _‘You can be stronger than that Cloud.’_

 _‘You don’t_ want _me to be stronger than the Cloud you know.’_

Cloud knew that he was right when Sephiroth fell silent. The denial was there, in the bond, but Sephiroth didn’t say it. Because both of them knew that Cloud was speaking the truth.

_‘You’re training me to be strong, as strong as you can, perhaps. But, in the end, you want your Cloud to be stronger than me. Why is that?’_

_‘I don’t know.’_

Sephiroth’s words were quiet. Hollow. But Cloud simply smiled, poking the other through the bond.

_‘I think I do.’_

_‘Oh? Enlighten me, then.’_

_‘Because if I was stronger than your Cloud… if I can surpass the Cloud you know… then everything you’ve done to Cloud up to now would be meaningless.’_ Cloud said, reaching over and grabbing his pillow. Since the whole incident of changing sheets, Science had not attempted the same trick twice. _‘All the pain you inflicted on him, all the things you made him suffer through, would be meaningless if you can achieve the same result without it.’_

Sephiroth’s discomfort shot through the bond, as if this was something he had just realized. _‘You will never surpass your older self,’_ he said firmly.

 _‘Maybe I won’t,’_ Cloud agreed. _‘If what you say is true, then he must be very strong.’_

_‘This doesn’t mean I’ll stop your training.’_

_‘I’d be disappointed if you did. And it won’t stop me from making friends.’_

Sephiroth’s exasperation overshadowed the discomfort. _‘Fine, but do you have to make friends with rodents? Can’t you find someone suitable as a friend?’_

Cloud’s hand shot to his chest in mock offense. _‘You mean Zack and General Sephiroth aren’t suitable?!’_

 _‘Probably the only good taste you have, brat,’_ Sephiroth said fondly. _‘If Cloud ever did show up here again… if I ever saw him again… then we might fight. Cloud does hate me, after all.’_

 _‘Sounds like he has good reason to,’_ Cloud commented. 

_‘He’s the one who killed me three times. I should hate him.’_

_‘But you don’t.’_

_‘...No… I don’t.’_

Cloud grinned, swinging his legs and opening his eyes. It was enough for now that Sephiroth could admit this to him. Not that Sephiroth had ever really lied to him about his intentions--he just didn’t tell the whole truth. It was what made Cloud so good at navigating through difficult conversations, inferring what Sephiroth meant with just a few words or phrases. And Cloud could tell that Sephiroth needed a distraction right now, even if Sephiroth didn’t know it himself. 

_‘Teach me how to spot Turks?’_

\--

Zack was on a mission.

A mission that had been interrupted by Tseng, but now he was back on the mission. He was hunting for Chocobos.

Well, a Chocobo. A certain mako-powered, blue-eyed Chocobo.

How was it possible for him to miss the distinctive hair? Plus, Cloud was a good head and a half shorter than most of the other teens. He was shorter than most of the SOLDIERs too.

Maybe it was those stupid helmets. Those dumb looking things were such a pain and Zack hadn’t been kidding when he said they would squish Spikey’s spikes down. It took months for Zack’s hair to recover.

The SOLDIER exam was a few months away, but now that Zack knew that Spikey had some version of super-powered, crazy-dangerous, possibly-planet-destroying version of Seph in his head, the idea that Spikey would fail the SOLDIER exam was laughable. In fact, Zack was surprised that Spikey wasn’t number one in the class--Seph had always been a stickler for the rules and regulations and perfection.

Still, that didn’t mean Spikey didn’t need protection from the crazy Science Department. Ol’ Zackster was on the case!

Except, Zack was having an unusually hard time finding the teen. Which was weird, in all honesty. Cloud wasn’t someone who would just disappear. Zack wondered for a few seconds if the Crazy Sephiroth in Cloud’s mind had somehow spirited him away or something before he looked outside.

The cadets were doing drills.

Zack smacked himself on his forehead as he honed in on the shortest teen among them. Of course.

Zack got to the field just in time to see Cloud remove his helmet and give one of his classmates a high-five. It was good that Spikey had friends outside of Zack and Seph. It made him think that maybe, maybe Crazy Sephiroth wasn’t as crazy as he thought? There was only one way to really know and that was to ask Cloud.

He paused, watching Cloud turn away from his friends to a water fountain, turning it on. Water sprayed out of the fountain in an overwhelming arc, spraying all the cadets, making them laugh and smack Cloud on the back, who got a face-full of water. Cloud emerged from the spray of water, laughing, shutting the broken pump off with a twist of the handle.

“Really, Cloud?” one of the cadets said, pointing to his dripping wet pants. “You had to get me in the crotch?”

“It’s the only action you’ll get around here, Jason,” one of the other cadets said, grinning. “Good job, Cloud!”

“So kind! Cloud became a RainCloud! He has bestowed us with his miraculous rain from the heavens!” one of the other cadets said dramatically.

Cloud laughed. “Don’t worry, Drew! It’s just an early shower.” He tossed his hair from side to side, shaking out a few drops of water from the hair plastered to the side of his face. Cloud raked his hand through his wet hair, ruffling it, and for half a second, Zack saw the shadow of the man Cloud would become. A strong, confident man that held the strength and loyalty of an army.

If this was what Tseng saw in Cloud, then he was far mistaken. It wasn’t a monster. It was potential.

Zack watched as Cloud’s cadet friends interacted with him, wondering what the crazy Sephiroth had to say about this. Surely he understood the value of loyalty? Or perhaps he didn’t? It was hard to say and Cloud’s expression didn’t reveal any hidden secrets.

Slowly backing away and hiding behind the wall, Zack took a deep breath to collect his thoughts. Maybe Crazy Sephiroth was an exaggeration. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as Sephiroth his headmate seemed to think? If an older version of Cloud was alright, maybe he just didn’t get along with older Seph?

Then he peeked over the wall and watched Cloud laugh with his fellow cadets.

What could make a man like that turn against someone? Against _Sephiroth_ of all people?! Zack just couldn’t picture it. He didn’t understand. Why did older Cloud feel as if older Sephiroth was a threat? Zack slipped back against the wall, pressing the back of his head into the stone, closing his eyes.

He needed to talk to Cloud.

“Zack?”

Zack’s eyes snapped open and he turned to see a bewildered Cloud that was standing next to the wall Zack was leaning against.

“Oh! Hey Spikey!” Zack said, though his tone was empty, even to himself. Would Cloud even know? Would the Crazy Sephiroth tell him? Did _Zack_ even want to know? “Did you finish your training?”

Cloud blinked at him and glanced at the other cadets before nodding slowly. The other cadets were huddled behind Cloud, looking between them.

Zack gave a cheerful smile, though it was forced. Cloud raised an eyebrow at him in a very Sephiroth-isque way and Zack had the distinct impression he was missing something.

“Awh, come on Spikey! Don’t look at me all disappointed like Seph does,” Zack whined, though this time his tone wasn’t forced at all. “You spend one afternoon with him and all of a sudden you’ve adopted the Disapproving Sephiroth Face!”

Several cadets gasped. But Cloud simply reached up and smacked Zack over the head.

“You sleepwalking, Zack?” Cloud asked, raising an eyebrow at him. “Do I need to page your handler?”

“Stop talking like Seph, Spikey, it’s creepy,” Zack said defensively, looking at Cloud while rubbing his head where Cloud had hit him. Cloud rolled his eyes and waved for the other cadets to head on in.

“I’ll join for dinner later,” Cloud said to the cadets. “Save me a spot. Oh, unless tonight is that weird stew. In that case, I’ll skip dinner. Text me.”

“Sure thing Cloud,” Drew said, patting him on the back and walking back into the building to shower and change for dinner. A few others stared at Cloud, but Cloud simply shrugged at them, waiting for them to clear out. Then he slowly grabbed Zack by the arm and pulled him along.

Zack allowed the cadet to drag him, wondering what he was going to say about all this. To Zack’s great surprise, Cloud had pulled him into one of the interrogation rooms, shutting the door behind himself and taking a deep breath.

“Zack, what’s wrong?” Cloud asked, his tone neutral.

“I just… Can’t stop thinking about the fact that you have Seph in your head. Wait, before we continue, you _do_ hear Seph in your head, right?” Zack blurted out.

“Yes, Zack. Although he is very insulted by your nickname. The Zack he knew didn’t give him a nickname,” Cloud said patiently. “He thinks it’s degrading. But don’t take it from him, he thinks most people are not worth his time.”

“Not worth--” Zack took a deep breath, slowly exhaling. “Okay, okay. So… it’s true then? That the Sephiroth in your head is older than the General upstairs?”

“Yep.”

“Is he… dangerous?” Zack asked slowly, still trying to picture Sephiroth being dangerous. Well, dangerous enough to spook Tseng and make General Sephiroth uncomfortable in his own office.

“In general? I mean, yeah? Isn’t General Sephiroth always classified as dangerous?” Cloud asked, bewildered.

“No, I mean… is he like… Did he try to destroy the planet? Kill all life-forms?” Zack elaborated, struggling with the words.

“Mister General is kind of curious to hear that you know about that,” Cloud said in response. Which meant… shit.

“Fuck, so he did?” Zack asked, swallowing heavily.

“He did.” Cloud’s confirmation was not reassuring, though his tone was. Cloud didn’t seem worried so maybe it wasn’t as bad as he was thinking?

“Mister General dropped a meteor on the planet.”

And there went the small wisp of hope that Zack was clinging on to. 

Oh, man. He was in over his head on this one, wasn’t he?

“Did you hear that from the older Cloud in General Sephiroth’s head?” Cloud asked, smiling a little. Zack swallowed, feeling slightly reassured that, at least Zack didn’t have to explain _that_. Like, how do you tell one of your friends that they had an older version of themselves living in the General’s headspace?

“Yeah.”

“Hm… Well, it’s not like they aren’t aware of each other by now,” Cloud said, shrugging. “But I suppose it would make sense in a way that you would be the first to know. You’re pretty close to both of us.”

“Wait, what?” Zack asked, feeling like he got lost in Cloud’s three-way conversation.

“Mister General knows about big me in General Sephiroth’s head,” Cloud elaborated. “And I assume that big me also knows. Which is fine.” He squinted at Zack. “What are you freaking out about?” Those blue eyes had no right to be so bright staring at him.

“I just… I was wondering… If the Seph in your head was… uh, crazy?”

It wasn’t the smoothest sentence Zack had constructed, but Cloud seemed to understand anyway. 

“He has no pressing concerns or plots to destroy the planet,” Cloud commented.

That didn’t really answer the “Is Seph crazy?” question, but it was a start. 

“Though that isn’t for the lack of threats. I think he’s just grouchy because he’s in my head and can’t do anything without me.”

Zack didn’t even know how to process that.

“If you want to talk about the lack of sanity from Mister General, now isn’t a great time. Mister General is getting very snappy,” Cloud said. “Is that all you’re freaking out about?”

“Wait! No! Science is after you!” Zack blurted out, forcefully pushing the feeling of inadequacy out of his mind. “Like, I saw it. Hojo wants someone to bring you in. The Turks.”

“Hm. Interesting.” Cloud didn’t seem to be worried. Zack felt himself relax just a fraction when Cloud didn’t run out of the room screaming. “Mister General wants to know if the order was already filed.”

“Yes. It was.”

“Okay. I’ll keep an eye out for Hojo then,” Cloud said, nodding. Zack blinked. 

“That’s it?” He asked, disbelieving. “You… Wait, does Crazy Seph _not_ want you to go to Science?”

Cloud gave him a measured look. “Why would Mister General tell me to go to Science when he’s the one who told me to _avoid_ Science? And Hojo. And if I meet Hojo, I should break his arms and legs and throw him down some stairs.”

“Oh. Oh! Good! Yes, very smart Seph,” Zack sighed out, relieved. “Warn Spikey before the thing actually happens. Good, good.”

Cloud gave Zack a frown, but then shrugged. “Zack, I think you’re assuming too much. Mister General isn’t dangerous since he’s trapped in my head. If he ever comes out, then you can freak out.”

“Yeah, okay. Give me a warning if he ever does, okay?” Zack said, patting Cloud on his damp head.

“He might never,” Cloud shrugged. “It’s not like we’ve been looking very hard for him to have a body. He doesn’t seem to care either way. Or, at least, it seems less of a priority than training me, apparently.”

Zack let out a shuddering breath, feeling like he could finally rest since finding out Cloud had Sephiroth in his head. “Right, okay. Hey, Spikey? How did you do the thing with Seph? The paperwork?”

“I literally have a version of him in my head,” Cloud said, raising an eyebrow at Zack. “They may be different on some levels, but Mister General’s way of organizing and working on paperwork is the same as General Sephiroth’s.”

“Yeah, but… But...”

Cloud glanced down at his own pocket when the PHS in his pocket chirped. He sighed and then looked at Zack. 

“We can discuss more later,” Cloud said. “I need to shower and get dinner.”

“Yeah. Yeah, see you later Spikey!”

Cloud gave him a wave as he left. Zack watched the door slowly swing shut behind him and fell into one of the chairs. 

This was more difficult than he had imagined. But at least he knew. Cloud was Cloud. And Cloud wasn’t worried that a crazy version of Sephiroth lived in his head. So, Zack decided, he wouldn’t worry about it either.

\--

_‘Well, from that conversation, I suppose it is safe to assume that the Sephiroth in your younger self’s head is the Sephiroth you know.’_

Sephiroth was still trying to recover mentally from the recap he had gotten from Zack. Which revealed that Cloud knew about the meteor and, yes, his insane self seemed to be in the same position the older Cloud was.

And his insane self had no intention of bringing Cloud to Science. 

_‘I don’t believe it. It must be some sort of plan or something. Science is probably the one and only chance that the Sephiroth I knew could regain his body or find out why this was happening.’_

_‘Perhaps he still remembers what Hojo had done to him. Done to us.’_

Cloud fell silent at that. Then, to Sephiroth’s great surprise, he reached over through the bond, hesitantly soothing the pain that Sephiroth didn’t even know he was feeling.

It seemed that Cloud wasn’t the only one with terrible trauma from Hojo’s hands.

_‘Cloud...’_

_‘I’m sorry. I didn’t even realize you...’_

Sephiroth smiled to himself wondering how Cloud would have reacted if he was standing in the room. Would he try to pet his hair like his younger self? Or would he just stand close to him, unsure?

 _‘Cloud, show me a memory of yours,’_ Sephiroth sighed. _‘Something that would soothe the bitter taste at the thought of Hojo?’_

_‘I… I don’t really...’_

_‘Anything will do, Cloud. Even if it’s just a memory of you getting ready in the morning.’_

The sigh that came through the bond was exasperated, but Sephiroth closed his eyes at the familiar whirl of color.

[The memory focused and Sephiroth became instantly aware of the smell of flowers. 

His hands grasped something. Even though Sephiroth wasn’t sure what Cloud’s hands were holding, it was important. Something very, very important.

Whatever it was, it was heavy. Although the weight of the blade was significant, the weight of whatever was on Cloud’s shoulders were even more so. It felt like acceptance, but also regret. Cloud’s hands grasped the hilt of the sword and he looked down at it.

Rusty, dirty, but still recognizable. Sephiroth felt a twinge of shock as he stared down at _Angeal’s Buster Sword_ in Cloud’s hands. But Cloud didn’t seem to be shocked--he didn’t even seem to realize the significance of the blade he was holding. Apparently not, if he had allowed the blade to deteriorate to this degree. But that was about to change, if the sword polish by Cloud’s knee was any indication.

Cloud’s hands worked over the blade, cleaning it with water from the spring inside the church and washing off the dirt and dust methodically, as if he had done this many times before. And slowly, but surely, the shine of the blade emerged, reflecting Cloud’s bright blue eyes and his spiky blond hair. Sephiroth remained quiet through the memory as he watched through Cloud’s eyes. 

It was like watching a craftsman work their magic. Like watching flowers bloom over the dry desert. With each passing second, more and more of the blade was revealed and the ache in Cloud’s heart slowly vanished with the dirt and grime. 

A warm breeze passed through the church and Cloud’s eyes looked up into the hole in the ceiling. He closed his eyes, his hands stopping as he took in the gentle smell of flowers, the breeze ruffling his hair and shirt. Then his eyes opened and he looked down at the polished blade, the Buster Sword having returned to its former glory. 

He looked into his reflection in the blade and smiled, touching the materia slots carefully as he wrapped his hands around the handle, lifting it easily and walking over to the patch of _flowers_ growing in the old, broken down church. He carefully shuffled around the plants, taking care not to step on any of the greenery and lifted the blade, tip pointed down, against the wall of the church.

“That’s okay, right, Zack?”

Cloud’s mako blue eyes looked into the polished blade and a smile passed over his lips, his heart finally at peace, a silver wolf earring on Cloud’s left ear shining in his reflection.]

The memory vanished in another whirl of color and Sephiroth’s eyes opened, feeling his heart drop a little in realization. If the blade had been Zack’s then it was inevitable that Angeal would…

 _‘Thank you, Cloud,’_ Sephiroth said softly. And even though he couldn’t see Cloud in his head, he knew that the other had given him a nod.

It was clear in that memory… Zack had died. The Buster Sword had somehow passed from Angeal to Zack and then to Cloud. And Sephiroth knew that Angeal would only separate with that blade if he had died. And for Zack to have passed it to Cloud, he too would have…

But the last image of Cloud’s face swirled into Sephiroth’s mind. The small smile, the feeling of satisfaction and peace… And the scent of flowers… 

Sephiroth wondered if he could make Cloud smile like that. Without the feeling of loss, regret, and pain.

To understand Cloud through these little flashes was a blessing. Cloud didn’t do well with words, but as someone who could feel every emotion that passed through Cloud’s mind, it was much easier to understand him. But these memories… The memory that Cloud had… told a story of pain and loss. Whether this was due to Sephiroth’s older, insane self, or if it was due to some other unforeseen circumstance, Sephrioth wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure whether he wanted to know either.

Ah, but the sight of Cloud with that peaceful smile… That was enough to wipe out any lingering discomfort from the thought of Hojo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys? Are my chapters too long? Here I am just trying to hit 10k words with each chapter, but good golly, I just realized that’s a lot of scrolling.
> 
> Also, 10k is a good amount of time for me to read and revise my work.
> 
> YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME! Thanks for taking the time to comment on my first work in AO3! I appreciate all the comments and support!


	2. To Woo a Dream - By Genesis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The memory of Cloud’s appearance was enough. It was enough, but it was also not enough. Sephiroth wasn’t sure what this feeling was or why he felt so restless.
> 
> All it took was one look at Sephiroth’s face... and Genesis did.
> 
> **“I’d like to call into session the first meeting of ‘How to get Sephiroth’s Attractive Dream Man Therapy’.”**

To say that Sephiroth started to daydream of Cloud was putting it lightly.

The next week, Sephiroth was horribly distracted from his normal duties. If Cloud knew of his daydreams, even better. But it seemed like Cloud had, for the most part, withdrew and allowed Sephiroth his thoughts.

Sephiroth wondered what it would have been like to fight Cloud. He could feel himself bubble in excitement, seeing in his mind eye how Cloud’s brow would furrow and how Cloud’s clear blue eyes with that mako green would turn to him and see only him. He could imagine Cloud wielding that gigantic sword of his, meeting Masamune blow for blow, until they were both covered in a thin layer of sweat and Sephiroth would push the blades aside to burrow his hand into Cloud’s feather-soft hair.

It was _so_ obvious that Genesis had paused in his LOVELESS rambling and slammed his hands on the table, a mischievous grin crossing his face.

“Who is she?” Genesis asked.

Sephiroth broke out of his daydream and looked at him, blinking slowly. “Who is who?” he asked, looking a little lost.

“The girl you’re daydreaming about,” Genesis said. “Listen, okay. You clearly haven’t listened to a single word I said because you’ve been fantasizing over here. So, who is she?”

“He,” Sephiroth corrected.

“HE?!” Genesis repeated, shock in his voice. But he shook himself out of it and pointed a finger at Sephiroth. “Alright. Fine. Who is he?”

“You wouldn’t know him,” Sephiroth sighed. “I only saw him in passing, in my dreams. But he was so handsome...”

“ _Infinite in mystery_ , Sephiroth,” Genesis sighed. “You’re pining over a dream.”

“I’ll have you know, he is very attractive,” Sephiroth defended, looking a little offended that Genesis would classify Cloud as ‘just a dream’. “And he’s definitely real. Well...” Sephiroth’s shoulders slumped a little. “Kind of.”

“It’s a dream, Sephiroth,” Genesis repeated. “But for the sake of both our sanities, please do share what this “attractive dream man” looks like. Maybe we can find out your type.”

Sephiroth gave a small, strangled noise. “He’s not… We’re not...” Sephiroth struggled to find the right words for it. “I’m not attracted to him because he’s a certain type. It’s more like… because of who he is.”

Genesis considered this, slowly leaning back and sliding his hands off his desk.

“Have you told him?” Genesis asked.

Sephiroth slumped. He slowly shook his head. “He won’t take it well.”

Genesis blinked, a little stumped. “Why not? You’re The General. You do know that so many people would _kill_ to go on a date with you, right? You don’t think this dream man wouldn’t do the same?”

“No.” And damn, did Genesis feel a little bad at the miserable look on Sephiroth’s face. “I remind him of someone who hurt him really, really badly. He definitely won’t take it well.”

There was a pause when Genesis slowly moved to the couch, sitting on the cushions slowly. “He _does_ know that you are not that person, right?”

“Yes. But it’s so ingrained in him… that fear, the trauma, that it’s not as simple as just… telling him. He won’t accept it. And… to be honest… it’s probably better for him if he doesn’t accept it. Because he hasn’t yet recovered from the trauma.”

Genesis considered this. “Sounds like he needs some therapy.”

Sephiroth gave a weak smile. “Yes. But he’s not someone who would readily accept help from someone who he doesn’t trust.”

“This is really fleshed out for a dream man you came up with,” Genesis said, squinting. “Alright. So, I’d suggest you let _him_ make the choice as to whether or not he wants to date you. The worst he can say is ‘no’ and it kind of sounds like you’re already mentally prepared for that.”

“It’s not me I’m worried about,” Sephiroth admitted.

Genesis blinked, looking intently at Sephiroth’s face. Sephiroth met his stare with his own cat-like green. “What?”

“That’s the first time I’ve heard you say that you care more for someone else’s feelings,” Genesis said slowly. “Whoever this dream man is, they are good for you. I approve.”

Somewhere between Genesis’ first and second sentence, Sephiroth got lost in the meaning.

\--

“I’d like to call into session the first meeting of ‘How to get Sephiroth’s Attractive Dream Man Therapy’,” Genesis started. Sephiroth lurched in the SOLDIER grade restraints, his green cat-like eyes wide with alarm as Cloud shifted in his head.

 _‘What the fuck?!’_ Cloud said.

Sephiroth had no response to that. He was still reeling from Genesis and Angeal’s kidnapping. They had barged in his office, claiming that Zackary was in trouble and lured him to a training room. Getting slammed by three Sleep in quick succession had been enough to take him down, despite Cloud’s warning shout. He had crumpled to the floor.

And promptly woken up, chained to a chair in Angeal’s apartment, sitting in a circle with Zackary, Angeal, and Genesis holding pens and notepads.

“I don’t really get it,” Zack said as Sephiroth frantically tried to tug on the chains. “It sounds like you guys are putting too much effort into this dream thing.”

“Zack,” Genesis admonished. “How many times have you seen Sephiroth swoon over someone? If we have to play matchmaker to Sephiroth and his imaginary friend, then we will damn play matchmaker to Sephiroth and his imaginary friend. No excuses! Angeal, ideas?”

Sephiroth didn’t think that this could get any more awkward. Especially since Cloud’s disbelief was echoing loudly in his head.

“Errrr, well… From what you explained to me, Genesis, Sephiroth looks a lot like someone who hurt this dream man badly,” Angeal started. Sephiroth felt like he was going to melt from embarrassment, frantically tugging at the chains. “So, maybe something like re-association? Like, if the dream man spends more time with Sephiroth, maybe he’d realize that they aren’t the same person and Sephiroth isn’t like that?”

“Good. We’re getting somewhere,” Genesis said, writing it down. “Sephiroth, what do you think about this idea? Re-association?”

Sephiroth looked at him in disbelief, echoing the expression Cloud seemed to have. “I think that this is hardly necessary, Genesis. I told you before, didn’t I? He _knows_ we’re not the same person.”

 _‘Sephiroth, what the fuck?!’_ Cloud’s indignant shout echoed in his head. But Sephiroth ignored him, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves. Alright, if this was to benefit Cloud, then he would sit through this. Even if Cloud did not agree.

He could practically _feel_ Cloud’s disbelief as he settled down in the chair.

“Right… Okay… That’s a good start then,” Genesis said, turning to Zack. “Puppy? Any ideas?”

“You should try giving him a hug, Seph!” Zack’s response was instant, as if he couldn’t wait until his turn.

“Sounds counter productive, if this man is someone in Sephiroth’s dreams,” Angeal said. “Can you touch a dream person?”

“For our purpose, the answer would be no,” Sephiroth responded, ignoring Cloud’s choked growl. “Imagine it’s someone through a PHS, Zackary.”

“Oh. Uh...” Zack seemed to think this through. “What about like, if Seph reminds this person of the person who hurt them because Seph wears leather, maybe Seph can start wearing jeans and a tee shirt or something? Or like, if the person had lighter colored hair like Seph, maybe Seph can dye his hair black? Things like that?”

The trio stared at him. Sephiroth blinked slowly, considering the idea.

Though the others couldn’t hear it, Cloud was the first to respond to the idea.

_‘If I ever got a body, that wouldn’t be a bad idea. But if we’re using the phone analogy, it’s not like that will work.’_

“It would work if the triggers are based on appearance. But over a PHS, it’s not like the other person would see you,” Sephiroth inputted on Cloud’s behalf. 

“Oh. Good point. Huh...” Zack’s brow furrowed, looking thoughtful. Genesis wrote it down on his notepad and then tapped the pen against the paper. 

“Sephiroth, what are the triggers?” Genesis asked. “It would be helpful if we could identify them and work to avoid them.”

“For now, the only thing that I can see as a trigger is the emotion, anger,” Sephiroth said. 

“Anger isn’t really something you can do exposure therapy on either,” Angeal said. 

“Really? I think I’ve seen you angry… like… twice. In six years. How the fuck does something like this even come up? You’re probably the least angry person I’ve met, apart from the Puppy,” Genesis said, raising an eyebrow.

“Hey!” Zack shouted, looking indignant.

“Sorry Puppy. That’s only cause I’ve never seen you angry,” Genesis said.

Sephiroth sighed.

“That’s because I’ve been working on it myself,” Sephiroth said. “I used to be more prone to bursts of anger. As a child, there were times I would run wild, destroying everything in my path. It was even encouraged by Hojo. This person has talked me down from anger quite a few times.”

“Wait, even though it’s a trigger for them?” Angeal asked.

“Yes.”

“Wow… That’s… Wow…” Genesis said slowly, his eyes wide. He had seen post-traumatic stress disorder from veterans in the Wutai war, but to work past your own triggers to comfort another was an impressive amount of willpower. “They must like you a lot to confront you while you’re angry if it triggers them.”

Sephiroth had no response to that, but he gave Cloud a mental poke. Cloud didn’t respond to the jab, so Sephiroth poked him harder.

 _‘It would be a lot more difficult if you were insane like the Sephiroth I know,’_ Cloud finally said. _‘But you don’t respond like him.’_

 _‘Is it easier to talk me down or is it easier to let me vent out my frustrations in the training rooms?’_ Sephiroth asked mentally.

Sephiroth could feel Cloud’s wary smile. _‘Your other self would often vent his frustrations out on me instead. By stabbing me with Masamune a few times. Or stabbing my friends a few times. Sometimes both.’_

A shiver went down Sephiroth’s spine, his green eyes closing to hide the horror in his eyes. “Anger is a trigger because bad things happened if the other person stayed angry. So it was easier to talk me down from my anger than potentially letting the anger stew.”

Angeal’s spine stiffened as he looked at Sephiroth. “Did… Did your dream man suffer abuse from someone?”

“At the very least, physical and psychological abuse, I would say. He’s not exactly open about it,” Sephiroth responded, squeezing his eyes shut tightly before opening them to look at the three. “I suspect that they have suffered flashbacks or something similar after they’ve talked me down and… hung up the phone, as we would say.”

“Damn… That’s not cool,” Zack said, crossing his arms. “Not cool at all. Do they have friends or support?”

“Not that I’ve seen,” Sephiroth said, shaking his head a little. “I assume it is due to the fact that… his abuser killed or chased them all away. I am unclear which it is.”

“That’s...” Angeal started, but Genesis cut through.

“Whoa. This is getting way, _way_ too complex. Your dream man seems like they have a lot of personal problems to go through,” Genesis said, scribbling down something. “Okay, so if they had three _awesome_ friends to lend support and one overexcited puppy, then I’m sure they’ll recover in no time! How about it?”

“Kind of hard to pull you three into my dreams,” Sephiroth said, blinking slowly. “But assuming this person is real, I would say that is a good start.”

Cloud gave a choked laugh, although Sephiroth couldn’t tell if it was amusement or mortification. 

_‘Cloud?’_

_‘You have ridiculous friends, Sephiroth,’_ Cloud said. _‘They tied you up and everything. Oh Gaia… Do you have any idea how badly this would go if they had captured your other self?’_

Sephiroth could imagine. That is, it would not go well. At all.

“So, assuming you are trying to set me up with this dream man of mine,” Sephiroth started, just to see if he could make Cloud blush through the link again. “How do you propose I woo them? Honestly, most of my fantasies are sparring sessions turned intimate.”

The red-hot scent of Cloud’s embarrassment and his subsequent retreat was expected, but oh-so-satisfying.

\--

They had given Sephiroth _ideas_.

And goodness, they were some ridiculous ones, but it made Sephiroth all the more desperate to get Cloud his body back.

He _might_ have been ignoring the little fact that Cloud’s insane Sephiroth might follow. 

_‘Stop it.’_

Cloud’s comment made Sephiroth sigh and turn his attention inward.

_‘Do you like flowers, Cloud?’_

_‘I mean it, Sephiroth. Stop.’_ Cloud’s voice was almost distant. Cold. Instantly, Sephiroth’s attention snapped up and he blinked, frowning a little.

 _‘Cloud?’_ Sephiroth paused, considering, for the first time, that perhaps Cloud didn’t want this. _‘Cloud, is being romantically involved with me really that disturbing to you?’_

 _‘It’s not terribly disturbing. I’ve been in your head for nearly ten years now.’_ Cloud’s words were calming, at least. _‘It’s just… I haven’t really had a chance to consider this. So it’s disturbing to me, since I don’t really… think of you that way...’_

_‘Oh.’_

That wasn’t a “No”. It wasn’t rejection, and yet, why did Sephiroth feel like it was a rejection?

 _‘Then… Could you learn to think of me that way?’_ Sephiroth asked slowly.

 _‘It’s never really crossed my mind,’_ Cloud replied. _‘It is possible, yes. But I haven’t really put any thought into it. Especially since I don’t really have a body or anything.’_

Ah, yes. That _was_ a problem, wasn’t it? The fact that Cloud didn’t have a body.

\--

Sephiroth generally didn’t like pulling Cloud out of cadet classes, his insane self in Cloud’s head or not. It was the principle of the matter. The idea that Cloud needed training or theory was absolutely laughable with Sephiroth in his head, basically providing all the information for him.

And the tiny Cloud’s Sephiroth didn’t give a flying fuck about the rules.

It was a good thing Cloud did, or Sephiroth felt like Cloud would be skipping classes every day. 

Still, sometimes it was good for Sephiroth to bring the smaller boy around. If not for his own Cloud’s peace of mind, then for his. Insane Sephiroth couldn’t exactly use Cloud to go on a rampage when Cloud was busy doing other stuff.

Security around the smaller Cloud was pretty much out the window. His older self was far more informed than Sephiroth would have liked, but it did mean that Cloud could help him on certain tasks that only Angeal and Genesis had clearance to. And Angeal and Genesis both loathed paperwork.

And that meant… that Cloud, having Sephiroth literally living in his head and knowing _exactly_ how Sephiroth organized things, could help Sephiroth with _paperwork_.

They would chat over working on the stacks. Sephiroth found that, if he brought the younger Cloud to assist him once a week, he could usually get all of his paperwork done in one evening. The rest of the week he would just have to pretend to look busy while hiding from more papers.

The younger Cloud seemed to have realized this, but didn’t say anything. 

The older Cloud simply sent a thought of _‘Really?’_ down the link. 

It was during one of these days that Sephiroth had proposed the question.

“Does _he_ have any idea how to get Cloud’s body back?” Sephiroth asked, placing a hand on his forehead as he read through, yet another, terribly written report by Heidegger.

“Oh. He said that your Cloud won’t like this coming from him, but… “Ask the Ancient”?”

And judging by the anger and resentment from the link, it was clear that Cloud _did not_ like it coming from the Sephiroth he knew.

\--

“He’s not actually a dream.” 

Sephiroth’s words interrupted the silence that had fallen between the three Firsts. They were working on paperwork right now--kind of a collaborative effort between the three, really. It was the perfect time to talk about this. “This” being: Cloud and Cloud and Sephiroth and Sephiroth.

No matter how he tried the conversation in his head, it still sounded stupid.

Cloud didn’t really know how to approach this issue either. Unhelpfully, he simply said to _‘just say it. We’ll figure it out and explain as we go’._ Apparently, he had recognized that the promise Sephiroth had made years and years ago was no longer important, since his younger self had arrived with the other Sephiroth in his head.

So Sephiroth just kind of… blurted out the first thing he thought would put it into perspective.

Genesis’ brow furrowed as he looked up from the papers. “I wish _this_ was a dream.” He threw down the paper in his hands, glaring at it.

Angeal was a little more calm. “What do you mean, Sephiroth?” he asked politely.

“The man Genesis is trying to set me up with. The one I keep daydreaming about.”

“Dream, imaginary friend, whatever!” Genesis threw up his hands. “Do we _have_ to talk about this right now? We have paperwork to finish.”

“Yes. This is important to me.”

Angeal set down his paperwork at that and slowly turned to Sephiroth who was looking at them in turn. Genesis grumbled and sighed and turned to Sephiroth too. 

“Alright, spill. What is it? He’s not a dream, then what is he?” Genesis said, frowning.

Sephiroth wondered how he was going to explain this. “For many years now… since I was twelve, I have heard a voice in my head that wasn’t my own.”

Genesis didn’t look terribly impressed, but Angeal looked concerned.

“It just happened one day, without warning. I woke up and I wasn’t… alone in my head. There was someone else there.” Sephiroth explained. “It was odd, because he had his own personality, feelings, and perspective. He even had _memories_ that did not belong to me.”

Angeal and Genesis exchanged a look. Sephiroth wasn’t very adept at reading the two friend’s wordless exchanges, but it didn’t matter right now.

“His name is Cloud.”

“Cloud,” Angeal repeated. “Like Zack’s cadet friend? The one that was in your office, helping you with paperwork?”

“Exactly so. Except… Except, this Cloud was older. More experienced. And… he had a very unfortunate past with… myself in his memories. In his _world_.” Sephiroth looked at his two friends who seemed to have frozen in place, confused. “At the time, Cloud did not divulge to me that he thought there would be another, younger version of himself. So he was the only Cloud I knew.”

“Cloud...” Genesis said slowly. “The Chocobo with Mako Eyes? That kid that Zack keeps talking about?”

Sephiroth wasn’t terribly surprised to hear that Genesis had heard of the rumor. “Yes. I will explain that later. For now, let me finish my own narrative.”

Waving his hand to invite Sephiroth to continue, Angeal folded his hands on his lap. 

“Cloud actually navigated me through a lot of social situations. Including the invitation to letting you two know that you are important to me. He was the one to suggest that you two may have wanted to hear the words.”

“Smart kid,” Genesis grumbled, a frown on his face. 

“He is also the one who revealed my past to me,” Sephiroth said finally. “And my potential future.”

“Potential future?” Angeal said.

“The reason why Cloud has such an adverse reaction to my anger is because the Sephiroth from his world would stab him or his friends a few times when he was angry. He would _use_ Cloud against his will and bring about destruction with Cloud’s hands,” Sephiroth sighed softly. “And the reason why Cloud was so susceptible to his Sephiroth was because of Hojo.”

“Wait, where does Hojo fall into this?” Genesis asked. 

“He started it. The Jenova Project. Along with Professor Gast and Hollander.”

Sephiroth spoke slowly and clearly, almost robotically. It was harder to say these words out loud, the reason and purpose of their births. Genesis’ expression went hard, but Angeal gripped his hand as Sephiroth explained their creations, origins, and finally… Cloud.

When he finally finished, Genesis’ knuckles were white and his entire frame was tense.

“So… in the end… we were just tools for Hollander to compete with,” Genesis said softly. “ _Dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul_ , we were just…!”

“As I was a tool for Hojo to compete with, yes.” Sephiroth agreed.

“But you won.” Genesis’ expression was masked with rage, but Sephiroth could see the pain behind it.

“Hojo won. I… I became a shiny trophy for Shinra. I became their weapon to slaughter men, women, children in Wutai. A face for them to use as a poster child for recruitment. So that Hojo may have his pick of the litter from the incoming cadets,” Sephiroth said, his expression flat.

Genesis looked like he wanted to argue, but then his shoulders slumped. “So… After Cloud killed you, Hojo used him to try to replicate you. But Cloud said you couldn’t be cloned. Why would he bother?”

“Has that ever stopped Hojo before? In short of myself, has he ever expressed any remorse or sorrow for the lives he has destroyed under his knife?”

Angeal’s expression slowly slumped into a defeated pose. “So, Cloud has somehow made his way into your mind. Neither of you know how. But how does Zack’s friend… The younger Cloud fit into this.”

“The other Sephiroth--Cloud’s Sephiroth, is in the younger Cloud’s mind.”

Both Genesis and Angeal looked at him in horror. 

“Wait! No! We have to save him!” Angeal said, leaping to his feet and making a beeline to the door.

“It’s too late. From what I surmised, that Sephiroth had been in Cloud’s head for more than four years now,” Sephiroth called, stopping Angeal in his tracks.

“Four years! Four years of corrupting that young child?!” Genesis asked, looking horrified. “Who knows how many world destroying plans he had sneaked to that kid!”

“Quite a few, according to the younger Cloud,” Sephiroth said, slowly rolling his pen on his desk with his left hand. “Look at that child. Does he seem like he is corrupted or is going to snap and destroy the planet?”

Angeal considered this point. Sephiroth gave a wry smile.

“Furthermore, apparently, my other self has been training the boy. He is the reason that child has such advanced mako treatments. And the reason that child is able to fight with a sword. He is, apparently, quite invested in the child’s upbringing.” Sephiroth picked up his pen and looked into the engraving on the side.

“Okay. I won’t say I believe you without proof. This is too fantastical and I don’t think you even know what imagination _is_ ,” Genesis said. “So, why did you tell us now? What changed?”

Sephiroth paused, looking at the two. “I want to bring Cloud’s body into this world and transfer his mind back.”

The staring was quickly becoming old. Sephiroth put the pen on a stack of papers and stood up, looking at the pile near Genesis and then the one near Angeal. 

“However, to do this, would provide a link for the other Sephiroth to enter this world too. Cloud is strong, yes. And he may be able to defeat my other self as he has in the past, but he cannot do it alone.”

“Why would this even be an option? It sounds like your other self is more concerned with training the younger Cloud rather than killing people in this world,” Angeal said slowly.

“He might be,” Sephiroth agreed. “And yet, when the world is asleep, he might find the urge to destroy something. I have told you before that, as a child, I had felt the need to destroy things. It seems he never really grew out of that urge. Furthermore there is the issue of Cloud… the one in my head, that is.”

“He needs therapy for this,” Genesis realized with a soft huff.

“Yes. To be around, not only the homicidal version of me, but also… well… me… it will not bode well for his continued mental health.”

_‘I hate how you are all talking about my sanity when I can’t even contribute...’_

Sephiroth suppressed a bit of a hysterical giggle, but looked at Genesis and Angeal. “I don’t even know if it is possible to bring Cloud’s body here, but considering that Cloud carries the other Sephiroth’s mind, it is clear that this will be an issue whether we like it or not.”

“Can the other Sephiroth… take over Cloud’s body?” Angeal asked.

“For all purposes, when I asked, Cloud said no. My Cloud has never been able to take over my body either, if that is any consolation. However, I do believe little Cloud can be influenced by the other Sephiroth’s words and, possibly, his emotions.”

“Alright...” Genesis gave a deep sigh. “How is it that you end up in these situations, my friend?”

Sephiroth gave a small smile as Genesis relaxed against the couch.

“So, what are your plans when Cloud does have his body back?”

Sephiroth took a moment to contemplate this question.

“I don’t know,” Sephiroth responded eventually. “I don’t know, but… Angeal, remember when you brought Zack to my office?”

“That Zack was important to me so I wanted him to be important to you too?” Angeal said.

“Yes,” Sephiroth agreed. “That is why.”

Angeal and Genesis shared a look and then smiled at each other before looking at him. 

“Alright, Sephiroth,” Genesis said, standing up. “If this guy’s been living in your head for almost ten years, then he’ll have to experience what it’s like to be alive again. I’m going to take him to all the LOVELESS productions!”

_‘Please don’t...’_

“What does he like to eat? I’m sure I can find some kind of recipe on it,” Angeal asked.

_‘Just don’t...’_

“I’m not sure. Perhaps we can ask the smaller Cloud what he likes? Surely, their tastes can’t be terribly different,” Sephiroth said excitedly, ignoring Cloud’s weak protests.

_‘...Go overboard...’_

\--

“I’d like to call into session the second meeting of ‘How to get Sephiroth’s Attractive Dream Man Therapy’,” Genesis started. 

This time, Sephiroth was not restrained. Instead, he was sitting pleasantly in a chair next to Zack, while the younger Cloud blinked at Genesis.

“Commander Raphosdos, I hardly think my presence is necessary for this,” tiny Cloud commented, his big blue eyes looking at Genesis innocently.

“First, Chocobo, it’s Genesis. You should actually _call_ me by my name if you really do have Insane Sephiroth holed up in your head. And second, your presence is _very much required_ in this meeting as you are the only link we have to the Cloud in Sephiroth’s head. That is, you can tell me what you like and don’t like and we can weaponize it on big Cloud,” Genesis declared.

“Mister General does not like that. He does not like it at all,” tiny Cloud said, a small smile on his face. “He’s threatening to do some very nasty things to you.”

“Insane Seph’s opinion doesn’t count,” Genesis said, waving his hand in Cloud’s direction. 

“I’m not sure how much that would help. Clearly, both Clouds had very different upbringings,” Angeal said reasonably.

“It doesn’t change that they are, at least, very similar people,” Genesis dismissed. “Okay. Let’s begin. So Cloud, tell us about yourself.”

Tiny Cloud blinked and cocked his head. “Genesis, wouldn’t it be easier to ask big Cloud these questions?”

“He can’t be trusted to answer,” Genesis said.

“Surely… it would still be better to ask him though. I am not that Cloud.”

“Stop channeling your inner Sephiroth and answer. What do you like? If someone was to try to win your heart, affection, love, whatever, how could they go about it?” Genesis demanded.

Sephiroth found himself amused in spite of the interrogation of the smaller Cloud. The Cloud in his mind gave a mental groan and a wave of embarrassment flushed through the bond. Which was just as amusing as Genesis demanding the smaller Cloud to “stop channeling his inner Sephiroth”.

“Hmmm, well...” Cloud tapped his finger against his cheek. “There are many things I like. I like fresh fruit and sunshine. I like the smell of bread and vanilla. And I like my sword.”

Zack and Genesis were scribbling the things down, but Angeal looked at Cloud. “Cadets aren’t allowed swords.”

“Nah. My Ma bought it for me when I was younger. It was a lot easier to hunt with a sword than with a knife,” Cloud chirped. “If big me also fights monsters, I bet he’d like his sword too.”

“He does,” Sephiroth said, picturing the buster-like blade in his mind. “Very much.”

“See? Also, I bet he likes peace and quiet too. Naps in the sunshine. Things like that,” Cloud grinned. “I’ve never been big into crowds though, so I doubt he would be either.” He paused, watching the two still scribbling.

“And me! You like me too, right Spikey?!” Zack asked, pointing to himself.

“Of course, Zack. I like you too,” Cloud said, cheerfully.

“Good, good. Very good, Chocobo,” Genesis said, looking up at Cloud’s spiky hair. “Ignore your inner Sephiroth for now.”

“Mister General is threatening you very loudly,” Cloud commented, looking innocently at Genesis. “He seems to think that big me belongs to him.”

 _‘I do not_ belong _to that maniac!’_ Cloud hissed in Sephiroth’s head. Sephiroth smiled and looked at tiny Cloud. Chocobo, as Genesis insisted on calling him.

“My other self seems to have forgotten that Cloud is in _my_ head,” he said easily. “I have more claim on him than he currently does.”

_‘I don’t--’_

“Maybe you two can share big me then,” Cloud shrugged.

_‘No! Absolutely--’_

“That’s a wonderful idea, if my other self is willing to forgo all world domination plans and tormenting big Cloud plans. And if he absolutely _insisted_ on assisting us in making this world a better, more comfortable place for big Cloud and all of his wonderful, wonderful friends, I’m sure he would earn big bonus points,” Sephiroth commented cheerfully, cutting off Cloud in his head.

_‘I hate you.’_

“Don’t worry, General, sir. I’m sure big me would much prefer you over Mister General. Mister General can be kind of an asshole,” tiny Cloud said.

Genesis snorted. “I’m starting to think that all the therapy your bigger self needs is to spend some quality time with you, Chocobo.”

Cloud gave a pleased smile. “If Mister General feels like fighting, he should just say so. He’s not very honest with himself.”

“Are… you not concerned that the Insane Sephiroth will… come after you when he gets his body?” Angeal asked, looking closely at Cloud.

“Of course he’ll come after me,” Cloud said easily. “But after all the time my big self spent running away from Mister General, isn’t it time Mister General spent some time running after me? It’s only fair.”

Sephiroth squinted at the little Cloud and then at Zack who was looking at Cloud with a curious smile. 

“He might kill you,” Sephiroth reminded.

“He could. But then where would he be? Bored.” Cloud smugly crossed his arms. “Sure he could blow up the planet. Sure he could kill Hojo. But neither of those would satisfy him for that long. I suppose that is why he keeps trying to torment big me. Because he’s bored. Isn’t it time he got a taste of his own medicine?”

Zack ruffled Cloud’s hair. “My cute little Chocobo. All grown up.”

Sephiroth felt a dark chill run down his spine and shared a concerned look with Angeal and Genesis. He almost pitied his other self. Almost.

 _‘...I… Don’t understand how I could have turned out like that...’_ Cloud muttered, just as unnerved as the rest of the Firsts.

“Don’t worry, Mister General. There is nowhere you can hide where I won’t find you,” tiny Cloud said cheerfully. “We _are_ connected mentally, after all.”

“I think some of Seph’s insanity might have rubbed off on Cloud here,” Genesis said slowly, his blue eyes wide. Cloud gave them a cheery smile.

“Isn’t that normal? After all, big me seems to have rubbed off General Sephiroth too,” Cloud said. “You don’t need to worry about Mister General. I will handle him.”

Somehow, this time, the smaller Cloud’s words held far more weight.

“We can’t just… depend on you to handle the Sephiroth in your head,” Angeal said, swallowing the nervous lump in his throat.

“You wouldn’t ask a chocobo racer to wrangle a dragon. You ask the dragon handler,” Cloud said, the mako eyes just a little too bright. “All of you are strong, but you’re too attached to Mister General since he looks like General Sephiroth. He’s _my_ responsibility now.”

The silence that followed was eerie. 

\--

“At sixteen hundred hours, Professor Hojo entered the stairwell on the thirty-second floor. Approximately three minutes later, Cloud Strife exited on the sixty-fourth floor. About ten seconds after that, Professor Hojo hit the ground floor, apparently having toppled down the stairs and over the railing, apparently breaking all four limbs on impact. No other personnel appears to have entered or exited the stairwell,” Tseng reported, looking at Veld. “Thus concludes my report.”

“Was Strife interviewed?” Veld asked.

“He was. And has thus stated, ‘I didn’t even know Professor Hojo was in the stairwell.’ When questioned why he decided to take the stairs from the twentieth floor to the sixty-fourth floor, he declared that he needed to warm-up before the gym and the stairs were great cardio,” Tseng commented, flipping a page in his notebook. “It took him approximately twelve minutes to climb the stairs from twenty to sixty-four. Even for someone enhanced, that is impressive.”

“No cameras in the stairwell,” Veld commented.

“No cameras in the stairwell,” Tseng confirmed.

The two looked at each other and slowly nodded. “Very well. We can only conclude that this was a tragic accident. Professor Hojo won’t be recovering any time soon then?” Veld asked, raising an eyebrow at Tseng.

“Most likely not,” Tseng replied. “And even if he does recover… the possibility of him regaining enough mental facilities to be able to head his department is slim to none.”

Tseng exited the room and headed over to the cadet practicing area, where Cloud was performing drills with his classmates. He waited patiently, watching as Cloud did sit-ups and push-ups, and then ran on the track with ease while his classmates fell behind. In fact, the worst thing that seemed to be affecting the blond appeared to be the hot sun. Cloud wiped the sweat off his forehead, squinting in the light.

Just as Cloud passed him to get his water bottle, he spoke.

“So… how many flights of stairs did Professor Hojo fall down?” Tseng asked smoothly.

“I donno, Mr. Tseng. Could have been one, could have been ten. I wasn’t there,” Cloud commented, taking a large gulp of water. “Don’t worry though, Mr. Tseng. I’m sure that, no matter how many flights of stairs he fell down, he probably stopped eventually, hm?”

Tseng gave the boy a small grin. “He sure did.”

“Then that’s good. Hopefully the good Professor gets better soon. I hear he has a lot of projects to work on,” Cloud said with all the innocence of a child, his mako blue eyes shining.

“I hear he was talking about taking you in as one of his newer projects,” Tseng commented.

“Did he? Well, perhaps he could first study the effect of gravity. I hear it can be quite dangerous when people take a tumble down the stairs,” Cloud responded disinterestedly. Tseng’s grin widened.

“I hope we can continue to be good friends in the future, Strife,” Tseng said politely.

“Sure Mr. Tseng. Just be careful around stairs, okay? Don’t be careless like the Professor,” Cloud called back, putting his bottle down and jogging back to his group.

Tseng slipped back into the building with a pleased feeling in his gut. He was glad the little cadet was intelligent enough not to let anything slip during their conversation. Plausible deniability, as it were. There was nothing that he could even remotely use against the boy, since it already appeared to be common knowledge that Professor Hojo fell down some stairs.

Strife was sure crafty for someone his age. He’d probably make a good Turk, if Cloud wanted to be one. As it was, Cloud had made it pretty clear he wanted to be a SOLDIER.

What a pity that was.

He had some papers to shred. Conveniently, a certain order from a certain person from Science was going to be ‘accidently’ shredded too. 

\--

“Did you push Hojo down the stairs?”

Cloud looked up at Sephiroth over their Wednesday dinner, blinking innocently. Sephiroth wasn’t fooled in the least, raising an eyebrow at Cloud’s expression.

“Please tell me it was you,” Genesis said after swallowing his slice of roast beef. “I want to send you flowers.”

“Why would you think it’s me?” Cloud asked, tilting his head.

“Because you said you would break both his arms and both his legs and push him down the stairs?” Zack said. “Not that I feel bad for Hojo or anything. Creep deserved it.”

“Oh no. Is that what happened? How unfortunate,” Cloud said, his expression the very picture of sympathy. “For all of Professor Hojo’s projects, I suppose he should have studied gravity.”

 _‘On one hand, I should not condone the behavior of murder, or at least attempted murder from my past self. On the other hand, I kind of want to congratulate him,’_ Cloud commented in Sephiroth’s head. Sephiroth took a deep breath.

“So, did you push Hojo down the stairs?” Sephiroth asked.

“Oh no. It sounds like a truly horrible accident. Horrible indeed,” Cloud said.

“Accident,” Angeal said slowly.

“Is that not what you would call it when someone loses their footing and slips down a couple flights of stairs?”

“It absolutely would be, if the stairs weren’t separated by a landing between each half-floor,” Sephiroth hummed. “For Professor Hojo to slip down, not one, not two, not three, but ten different sets of stairs?”

“Tragic indeed,” Cloud agreed.

Genesis snickered. “Can you get Hollander next?”

“I do not understand what you mean when you ask me to ‘get’ Hollander. Perhaps you can elaborate?” Cloud asked pleasantly.

 _‘Do note that your tiny self only rejected the idea that he pushed Hojo down the stairs. He said nothing about tripping him repeatedly. Or throwing him down each flight of stairs. Or dropping him off the railing,’_ Sephiroth remarked. Cloud remained silent in his head for a moment before speaking.

_‘I’m pretty sure this is your other self’s fault.’_

_‘Probably.’_

“Cloud?” Angeal asked, looking at the teen.

“Yes, Commander Hewley?” Cloud said, tilting his head at the man. Angeal flattered seemed to consider his words before speaking.

“What do you think about the Sephiroth you call Mister General?” Angeal asked.

Genesis and Sephiroth sat up straighter, but Zack slumped back in his seat moodily.

“Come on guys. We’re supposed to be enjoying dinner. Not talking about the crazy Sephiroth in Spikey’s head,” Zack whined. 

“Arguably, you could say that he is joining us for dinner, whether we like it or not. If we invite Cloud, we invite his headmate,” Sephiroth pointed out.

“Don’t you already know about him from big me?” Cloud asked, nodding to Sephiroth while he speared a potato. 

“Yes. We do,” Angeal agreed. “But, once upon a time, he had us as friends. Maybe even Zack. What happened?”

Cloud fell silent, looking at Angeal closely. “I would have thought that was obvious,” the teen said. “He lost you two. And he probably wasn’t ever close to Zack like General Sephiroth is here. His reaction to Zack wasn’t very warm.”

“Lost us…?” Genesis asked, frowning.

“He’s never outright stated it, but considering he doesn’t speak of either of you, even now, it’s pretty obvious. His thoughts really only revolve around big me,” Cloud commented, looking at Genesis. “He greeted me by name, when we first met. He’s stated multiple times that things would be beneficial to me if I did certain things. He sometimes says things like ‘You should do this’ or ‘This wouldn’t be a problem for you normally’. Obviously referring to the other Cloud. He doesn’t speak about you voluntarily, really. And if he does say your names, he says things like “It would be beneficial for you to know the Firsts. Genesis and Angeal”. Things like that.”

“So, wait. He clings to Seph’s Cloud because he’s the only one he’s got left?” Zack asked, squinting.

“Not the only one he’s got left, but the only one he can really connect to, probably,” Cloud commented. “All the stuff he’s done to hurt big me is probably just because he wants attention. Well, kind of. He wants recognition from Cloud. He wants Cloud to accept him. Maybe because you two are similar.”

Cloud’s presence bristled in Sephiroth’s mind. His anger wasn’t overwhelming this time, but it was hot. ‘ _I am not_ similar _to--_ ’

“If he and you both had S-cells, then you were most likely the only other person who he felt connected to,” Sephiroth cut through, speaking out loud for the benefit of his audience. “If my other self felt superior to humans, but you, as a human, possessed something of his, then it isn’t a surprise he wanted to cling onto one of the few things he viewed as his.”

“I mean, it’s not really _right_ or anything,” tiny Cloud commented. “And he really, really shouldn’t have tormented big me the way he did. But he probably also felt angry and jealous that big me rejected him. And made it very clear that he didn’t need him. Or want him. One of the few things that he felt connected to did not want him. Like his friends, perhaps.”

“So you’re saying we… rejected him?” Angeal asked.

Cloud tilted his head, listening to Sephiroth speak in his mind before looking at Angeal. “Whatever personal reasons you had for leaving him behind, apparently you did not feel the need to explain anything to him before you two left. So if you clearly didn’t care for him then he was not obligated to care for you either.”

“I… we...” Genesis looked at Angeal and then at Sephiroth. “We wouldn’t do that!”

“Things are different here,” Sephiroth commented. “We are closer here. If you did leave, I would expect you to give an explanation. But if you didn’t...” Sephiroth turned to Zack. “Well, we would go find you and demand an explanation.”

“It matters not whether you think you would or wouldn’t. It is what happened in his past,” Cloud said, shrugging. “You abandoned him, and he felt alone in the world with Hojo as company. I mean… if Hojo is your moral compass, how far could you really get to understanding human and social values?”

 _‘...This doesn’t mean I’ll forgive him,’_ Cloud said in Sephiroth’s head. 

“Perhaps things can be different here,” Angeal said. “Perhaps even the Sephiroth in your mind can be happy here.”

“It will take time,” tiny Cloud commented. “He’s so used to forcing his way through violence, I don’t think he knows there are other ways to solve issues. He keeps thinking that it’ll be way easier if he just tore down Shinra tower and fight big me in the ruins.”

“That’s...” Zack looked at Cloud oddly. “Spikey, you know that’s not good, right?”

“Of course,” Cloud said casually, munching on his salad. “If he’s mad at two or three people, he tends to take it out on everybody. That’s definitely not good.”

“Does _he_ know it’s not good? Like, is he even aware of how insane he is?” Zack asked.

“Hm...” Cloud stopped eating, looking at Zack with a small frown. “Well, if you’re going to ask it that way, then I guess the answer is ‘no’. He doesn’t see it as insane. He sees it as a perfectly, rational, problem-solving method without the pesky details to come back and bite him later. To him, it’s solving problems before they escalate. No one sees themselves as the bad guy, Zack. Not even Mister General. He can rationalize things to himself, just like I’m sure all of us can.” Cloud popped a carrot into his mouth and added, “Under Shinra’s employ, I’m pretty sure we’ve all done things that are at least morally questionable. But we will explain things in a way that makes us sound like the good guy.”

“And the Sephiroth in your head does too?” Genesis asked. “What’s his rationalization for hurting Seph’s Cloud?”

“Necessary to make Cloud stronger. Turn his anger into strength,” Cloud shrugged. “The more losses he suffered, the stronger his resentment and the stronger his will to match him.” He tilted his head and then spoke again. “He hasn’t thought about doing that to him here though. And he said he wouldn’t do that to me.”

“Do you trust him?” Angeal asked.

“Sure. Why would he lie about that?” Cloud asked, shrugging. “Plus, if you always doubt the truth from someone, eventually, they’ll get tired of trying to convince you and start telling you the lie you want to hear instead.”

“I can, at least, tell when Cloud lies to me in my mind,” Sephiroth said slowly. “Is it the same for you?”

“Kind of? If he’s lying to me, he puts in a lot more effort in trying to hide himself,” Cloud said. “So, yes. I suppose I can tell when he’s lying. But he doesn’t lie to me usually. He usually lies to himself.”

The three Firsts stared at Cloud, who went back to his potatoes. 

“These are really good, Commander Hewley!” Cloud chirped.

“Call me Angeal.”

\--

_‘What do you think, Cloud?’_

Sephiroth was sitting in his apartment, his hands in his lap, reflecting his thoughts inward. It was easier to talk to Cloud this way, easier to think about what had occurred over dinner without the extra noise of other people moving and shifting.

 _‘About what?’_ Cloud asked, his tone exhausted.

 _‘The conversation over dinner. Your younger self is surprisingly perceptive,’_ Sephiroth commented. 

_‘I wasn’t that perceptive at his age. This must have been influenced by Sephiroth,’_ Cloud replied. _‘I guess Sephiroth really was being serious when Cloud said that he was training and mentoring him.’_

 _‘...I don’t think you have to forgive him,’_ Sephiroth said slowly.

_‘I can’t. Not after all he’s done to me. To my friends. To the planet. I can’t forgive him for it.’_

_‘I’m finding it very hard to forgive what he did to you too,’_ Sephiroth reassured. _‘I don’t think it’s a requirement to forgive him.’_

_‘He doesn’t make it easy to forgive him either. Every time he shows up, he causes some disaster. To taunt me. To hurt me. Or to hurt my friends.’_

_‘To be honest, from the way your younger self spoke, I don’t think the Sephiroth you knew is looking for forgiveness anyway. Both of us place a cheap value on human life.’_

_‘...’_

_‘It’s not easy for me to see the point of interaction when we could have been deployed at any time. It’s not easy to form bonds with people that could die in the next battle, leaving you with the loss of a friend. And it certainly didn’t help that Shinra takes the stance of sacrificing a few lives for the improvement of their world. The entire Wutai War was fought for the purpose of building a new reactor to expand their world.’_

_‘What changed for you?’_ Cloud asked quietly.

_‘You did. You came to me and taught me to treasure the things I have and build more connections. But if you weren’t here… perhaps I would end up like the Sephiroth you knew.’_

_‘You still could have.’_

_‘You showed me that there was another way.’_

Cloud fell silent at that, his emotions wavering.

_‘Maybe it is enough that we trust your younger self. Even if we don’t like who he is vouching for or why. Maybe it is enough to believe in Cloud. After all, you are capable of amazing things. I don’t see why your younger self wouldn’t be.’_

_‘To risk the world on the shoulders of my younger self seems selfish,’_ Cloud murmured quietly.

_‘How is it any different than risking the world on your shoulders? If you hadn’t been able to defeat that Sephiroth?’_

_‘I knew what I was getting into. All of us did.’_

Sephiroth was glad that Cloud revealed that tidbit of information. It meant that Cloud was not alone when he was fighting.

_‘Out of all of us, I believe only young Cloud truly knows what he’s getting into. If there is a price that must be paid, then we’ll be here to help him pay it.’_

_‘I won’t be his friend.’_

Sephiroth smiled. _‘I’d be surprised if you were. To be honest, I am not inclined to be his friend due to his poor treatment of you. I think Genesis and Angeal feel the same way.’_

_‘...That wouldn’t be fair to him. For him to see the shadow of his friends, but never be able to obtain that slice of happiness...’_

Sephiroth opened his eyes and looked into the mirror. It was the same mirror he had peered into, the first time he noticed that Cloud was in his head. Even in the dim light of the city below, Sephiroth could still see every detail of his own face.

“No, it wouldn’t be fair to him,” Sephiroth agreed. “It would be extraordinarily painful.”

_‘...’_

Sephiroth smiled at his reflection. “You really are a kind person, Cloud.”

\--

Genesis squinted at his notes and then sighed, throwing the notebook onto his bed and plopping down on it. Angeal peered at him from the desk, still finishing up some paperwork that he hadn’t finished from earlier that day since he was training Zack.

“What’s wrong?” Angeal asked.

“I just… _My friend, the fates are cruel; there are no dreams, no honor remains_. It’s Sephiroth. Well, the crazy one,” Genesis sighed.

Angeal set down his pen, swallowing heavily. “The things Sephiroth told us about his insane self… at the time, I had thought Sephiroth wasn’t capable of doing those things. I’m still not sure he’s capable of doing those things, even after the proof of a different Sephiroth in Cloud’s head.”

“Yeah. But now...” Genesis looked at Angeal. “Now it seems like we started his descent to madness. We were partially responsible. I mean, not us, but...”

Angeal gave a small, sad smile. “If we abandoned him before, then he really was all alone in Shinra. I guess it wouldn’t be that surprising that he would turn out like that. Uncaring for human life and terribly cold to anyone who isn’t Cloud.”

Rolling on the bed to face Angeal, Genesis spoke again. “Do you think he’ll be able to forgive us? If we appeared back in his life?”

“Knowing Sephiroth? He doesn’t forgive. He doesn’t forget. He’d probably resent us,” Angeal replied. “It’s better this way. For him to see a version of us that isn’t his own. For that reason, I am kind of glad he’s currently trapped in Cloud’s head. Where he can’t do damage to any of us or try to kill us for things our other selves did.”

“He tried to rule the planet.” 

A frown crossed Angeal’s face. “Kill all the humans on the planet to rule the shell, hm… Talk about dramatic.”

Genesis giggled. “That should be more of my thing.” His face fell and the smile slid off his lips. “But, really though… Perhaps Seph’s Cloud isn’t the only one that needs therapy. Maybe crazy Seph does too.”

“I doubt the insane Sephiroth would accept anything from us,” Angeal said. “If we really did just… up and leave him.”

“Chocobo can administer his therapy!” Genesis said. “He’s coming to the next meeting.”

“Doesn’t he have class?” Angeal asked. “He’s still a cadet, you know.”

“He doesn’t _need_ it. He _literally_ has Sephiroth in his _head_ to tell him everything he needs to know about being a SOLDIER. And his enhancements are bonkers,” Genesis snorted. “And, plus, I’m pretty sure if it really came down to it, we can file paperwork that says Sephiroth has a new pet Chocobo that’s learning swordwork.”

\--

“I’d like to call the third meeting of “Headmates Need Therapy” into session. Except older Cloud needs therapy because of Crazy Seph and Crazy Seph needs… a reason not to blow up the planet or kill anyone,” Genesis said, looking over his notes.

“I’d like to contribute that ‘Crazy Seph’ objects to being called such,” tiny Cloud declared, raising his hand.

“Your objection is noted,” Genesis stated. “But until he’s not as crazy, he will remain as Crazy Seph.”

“Mister General says you might be his first target, Genesis,” Cloud said cheerfully.

“Duly noted,” Genesis said. “Let me know if he ever does get a body, will you, Chocobo? I’d like to get a head start.”

“Okay!”

“Can we not talk about Genesis’ unfortunate demise when we’re trying to get the other Sephiroth _not_ to commit murder?” Angeal said reasonably. 

“I thought other Seph’s reason to not blow up the planet was because it’d make Spikey sad?” Zack asked, looking at Cloud, who shrugged.

“If I’m dead, I can’t exactly be sad about anything,” Cloud commented.

“You are not allowed to die,” Sephiroth sighed. “Absolutely not. Your older self and I agree on this firmly.”

“Wait, so… Chocobo? Does Crazy Seph have any ideas on how to win older Cloud’s affections?” Genesis asked suddenly, looking at Cloud. Cloud tilted his head, listening to Sephiroth talk in his mind for a few minutes, blinking slowly.

“Older me likes his friends a lot. So if you wanted to stay in his good graces, don’t stab them,” Cloud stated. “Big me, you owned a motorcycle?! Really?! That’s SO cool!”

Genesis squinted at Cloud. “Okay, first point, no fucking shit. And second point…” He turned to Sephiroth, who suddenly had Angeal and Zack’s eyes on him as well. He gave a low sigh and mentally poked Cloud, who was doing his best to ignore the conversation, even if he couldn’t hear the Sephiroth he knew.

 _‘Yes. I owned a motorcycle. I ran a delivery service after everything was over,’_ Cloud responded with a low sigh.

“That is accurate,” Sephiroth confirmed, nodding. “He did own a motorcycle.”

“That’s pretty badass,” Zack said, impressed. “Was it a custom bike? I can’t imagine someone like Big Spikey using a normal motorcycle.”

“Yes, it was a custom bike. One of a kind,” Sephiroth echoed. He paused and then spoke again, although this time it was to the Cloud in his head. “You’ll have to show me what this bike looked like sometime. It sounds very impressive.”

“Big me… did you actually _make_ your sword? Mister General seems to think you did,” Cloud asked, leaning forward in his seat.

Genesis’ eyes widened and his jaw dropped. “ _Make_ his sword?! Wait, really?”

Sephiroth thought back to the beautifully polished buster-like blade that was in Cloud’s memory of himself, trying to picture the small blond making the sword. Even with SOLDIER enhancements and strength, it could not have been easy.

_‘...’_

“That seems to be a bad topic for Cloud. I’m sorry,” Sephiroth said in response to Cloud’s silence. “If he did make his blade though, I would think that he’d want to do it again if he ever got a body here.”

 _‘That would hopefully never happen,’_ Cloud said suddenly. _‘The events leading up to that would not occur and, therefore, I would never be able to obtain the materials needed to make that weapon ever again. However... ’_

Sephiroth remained silent as he waited for Cloud to respond, watching Genesis and Angeal scribble down the notes. 

_‘I may be more connected to the sword. That is, it may be with my body and it’s possible it would be brought along. Masamune seemed to have traveled with the Sephiroth I knew.’_

_‘Hopefully that is the case. I’d like to see that blade up close,’_ Sephiroth said carefully before turning his attention to the smaller Cloud. 

“Does my other self have any theories as to why this happened?” Sephiroth asked.

Cloud gave a small smile. “Mister General thinks that big me died. And since he is linked to Cloud, he was dragged along too.”

 _‘Funny. I don’t remember dying,’_ Cloud grumbled.

_‘What do you remember?’_

_‘Came home after a delivery. Ate dinner. Went to bed. Then I woke up in your head,’_ Cloud recited.

“Doesn’t sound like he just up and died at his age,” Sephiroth said slowly. 

“Then it’s probably Gaia’s doing. Or the Lifestream’s,” Cloud shrugged. “Does it really matter though? His body, if it’s anywhere, it would be in the Lifestream.”

“Lifestream...” Zack said, squinting.

“I remember that the other Sephiroth had told my Cloud to ‘Ask the Ancient’. That being said, I don’t know of any Ancients,” Sephiroth said slowly. “Angeal? Genesis? Do you know any Ancients?”

“I was under the impression they died out,” Angeal commented.

“I didn’t know you believed in that stuff,” Genesis said, puffing up. “Well, we should at least take a look. If Crazy Seph referenced it then it might be worth it to take a… Sephiroth?”

Sephiroth was staring at Zack who was tapping his pen on his notebook. Cloud slowly turned his head to look at Zack as well, his blue eyes wide. Genesis and Angeal followed Sephiroth’s gaze to look at the spiky haired male, a small frown on their faces. And Zack looked up in time to see everyone staring at him.

“Huh? What?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy! They all know now. The stage is set! Smol!Cloud, take it away!  
> Genesis will be the wingman. We all know how this will go…
> 
> THANK YOU!!!! For all the responses and kudos! I really do enjoy reading your comments! It’s extra flavor points! 
> 
> It was brought to my attention that two Clouds and two Sephs can be confusing. So, here’s a tip:  
> The breaks between sections signify a timeskip, a character point of view change, or both. I’ve been trying to keep it consistent. See if you can guess which character is with which section!  
> Of course, that’ll be infinitely harder when Cloud and Seph stop being headmates!


End file.
